Grooming a Taiyoukai
by irgroomer
Summary: What if Kagome was a dog groomer? What if Sesshomaru needed a haircut?
1. Chapter 1

"You are Higurashi Kagome, dog groomer," the short green demon standing before her stated. Kagome blinked and nodded, "I am, how can I help you?"

The demon fidgeted and said, "Is there somewhere more private we can speak?" Kagome looked around the nearly deserted grooming salon. Business was

slow in the early months. Absently she nodded, "Yes, we can go to the office." She led the demon to their office. "I am Jaken. My lord sent me on a very

important mission. He is in need of a groomer, but it must be someone who will visit milord's home to do the job. There will be offered a very large sum of

money and it will also require complete confidentiality on your part." Kagome blinked, "Does your…erm Lord have some sort of prize-winning show dog or

something?" Jaken snorted, "That is confidential." Kagome huffed, "And I suppose I will have to pay for the gas to get there." Jaken shook his head, "You

are to come with me immediately. We will be driven." Kagome scowled, "I am working right now, and I can't just leave to do a job on my own." Jaken

frowned, "Then you will leave work and come with me. What you are being paid to work here today will be nothing compared to the pay you will receive for

this job." Kagome pondered this, and then said, "How much are we talking?" Jaken pulled out a briefcase and poured out the neatly clipped money. "Each

of those stacks is one hundred dollars." Kagome balked, "I can't accept that much for one dog!" There were easily one hundred stacks. "He is a very large

canine I can assure you; this is a very good price for the size. Milord insists you take this and come immediately. If you require more, he will not refuse."

Kagome thought about it for a moment. On one hand, she was sure it was way too much money, but on the other hand, her family really could use the

money. People just did not visit the shrines anymore. Her grandfather and mother ran the Higurashi shrine that had been in her family for generations. Her

younger brother, Souta helped whenever he could. Finally she nodded, "Let me clock out and let mama know I might be a little late for dinner." Jaken

nodded, "I will wait in the limo. You will be out in precisely fifteen minutes." With that, Jaken left. Kagome eyed the money, and then scooped it up. After

putting most of it in her locker, she told one of the girls she was leaving, and then she clocked out, grabbed her grooming equipment, and called her

mother. "Hi mama. I will probably be late for that dinner tonight. I'm being paid to do a special job." Her mother chuckled, "All right, but be careful dear."

Kagome smiled, "I will Mama." By the time Kagome got outside, Jaken had been waiting for almost thirty minutes. "You are late girl." Kagome winced as

she climbed in the limo and dropped her bag at her feet, "Sorry, it took a bit longer than I thought." Jaken harrumphed and motioned for the driver to go.

Kagome tried repeatedly to find out what kind of dog she was going to be grooming, but all Jaken would say was that it was a very large Inu. Kagome had

no idea what that was and Jaken said Inu was not short for Shiba Inu, so she finally quit asking.

After an hour of driving through dense forests with only the road as a breaker, they came to a clearing. After another fifteen minutes, they arrived at an

enormous estate. Kagome was expecting something grand after the amount of money she had received, but it was nothing like she had imagined. The

main house was literally a castle. Kagome stepped out and tilted her head back to look up the face of the building. "This way," Jaken said as he marched

off. Kagome hurried to keep up with the fast-paced short-legged demon. He led her through a maze of hallways before finally coming to a massive door

with a crescent moon carved into it. Jaken knocked, and then slipped inside, shutting Kagome out. She stood there fidgeting with her bag until the door

opened again and Jaken poked his head out. "You may now enter. Do not be startled by his size, I did warn you he was large." Kagome nodded resolutely

and entered the room. She looked around, and then had to look again. She finally noticed that there were not four large white furry pillars in the room,

those were the rather large legs of the dog she was to groom. She blinked a few times to understand what she was seeing, but every time she refocused,

the image was the same. She didn't notice that Jaken had left until the door clicked shut behind her. Kagome was thinking that this was some grand joke

and a hoax until the dog moved. She gasped at how quickly and fluidly it moved. One moment it was standing there on the other side of the room, the next

moment it was in front of her. She looked up at it and had to nearly bend backwards to see the entire great beast. "No way," she whispered. She finally

took a good look at the dog and saw that its coat was horribly matted and she grimaced, "Well I guess I don't have to ask what kind of cut to do." She

looked at the size of the dog, then mournfully at her bag. "I'll need an extension cord," she murmured. The dog cocked its head then let out a massive bark

that scared Kagome into falling on her butt. "Don't do that! Bad dog, you scared me!" The dog glanced at her from the corner of its eye and raised a brow.

Kagome got up and started pulling things out of her bag. There was a knock at the door and a young demon brought in a bright orange cord. "Thank you I

was just saying I needed one of those." The demon bowed low and left. "Hmm, odd that one, Jaken didn't see fit to bow to me." The dog huffed and

Kagome set up. Kagome looked up at the daunting task before her, "Can you lie down?" When the dog complied Kagome exclaimed, "What a good boy you

are! So smart!" The dog narrowed its eyes at her, but did nothing else. Kagome felt the mats, "Hmm, probably going to have to shave all the way down."

She was right; eventually she was able to get under the mats with her shortest blade. She was able to brush out his ears and tail, though that took a lot of

work. "Okay now I need to shave your sanitary." The dog growled at her and she blinked up at it. "Now what's this? You were fine for everything else and

now you decide you don't like me? I have to get the mats out of there too or else that is just going to have worse ones after the bath." The dog lowered its

head and growled directly in her face. Kagome bopped it on the nose with her brush, "Bad dog, no growl!" The dog looked at her in surprise, and then she

said, "Now sit so I can get to your sani." The dog pulled up the front half if its body and sat, staring at her the entire time as she clipped. Finally she

nodded, "Good now lie down and lift that tail all the way up for me." He did as asked, then jumped and put his tail down as soon as Kagome tried to clipper

the backside of the sani. Kagome shook her head, "I have to shave there too. You just have to trust me boy." He stared at her for a moment, and then he

finally lifted his tail again. When she was finally finished she nodded, "Great, the next step is the bath." He cocked his head. "Do you like the bath boy?

Huh? You wanna get all wet and clean?" She used a baby voice as she reached over and scratched his side. The dog looked at her in surprise, then his lids

sagged and his tongue lolled out. She giggled when his foot twitched, but he did not actually start scratching. When Kagome stopped the dog shook his

head and glared at her, then he rose and walked over to another door, just as big as the one she came in. She followed him, not really noticing the sky that

was slowly turning pink, "Where are you going boy?" She walked out behind him to find a large garden. It was surrounded by walls taller than she had ever

seen, as they were tall enough to tower over the dog.


	2. Chapter 2

She was in awe over the array of flowers in the small garden. Finally, the dog stopped at a gate and barked twice. The doors opened and he walked out.

She followed him, worried about him getting out, but unable to do anything about it. Finally, they came to a lake and he jumped in with a big splash,

inadvertently soaking Kagome. She yelped, "Hey!" The dog turned around and stared at her. The sound he made sounded suspiciously like a laugh. "You

are so lucky I'm wearing my grooming clothes, at least these clothes are water resistant." She sighed, "Well since I don't have any soap, and it would take

forever anyway, I guess we'll have to make do with just water." He swam for a bit, and then came closer to Kagome so she could make an effort at

scrubbing him clean. Finally, she said he could come out. "Do you think you could run around so you could get dry?" With that, the dog took off, faster than

Kagome could see. She blinked, then started trudging back to the estate. As she reached the gate she had left from, the dog returned completely dry. She

stared in astonishment, "You dried yourself that fast just by running?" The dog stared at her until she shrugged and followed him back to the room.

Kagome did the final touches on the groom, then stepped back to admire her handiwork. She nodded, "Good. And it only took me…" She glanced at her

watch and was surprised to see that it was eleven at night. "Six and a half hours!" She groaned, "Mama has probably given up on me coming home for

dinner." Jaken entered the room, "Dinner will be ready soon how much longer-oh! You are finished then. Come with me." Kagome looked at her scattered

tools buried beneath mounds of hair, "But my-" "Your things will be collected and cleaned along with this room." With that interruption, he simply left.

Kagome shrugged and turned to pet the dog, but he was gone. She blinked and looked around the room trying to figure out how he had disappeared. She

didn't find any trace of the dog so she followed Jaken out.

Jaken led her through a maze of hallways and doors until she couldn't figure out which way she had even come. He pushed open a final door, "This is your

room for now. There is a change of clothes, so get cleaned up. Someone will get you when dinner is ready." Jaken left Kagome to open the door and enter

her room. She was in awe; the room was gorgeous. It was paneled in a dark wood, with a marble floor. The bed was an enormous four-poster with black

drapery and red bedding. Beside the bed, there was a small side table, and then there was a vanity holding a few toiletries and an armoire. Inside the

armoire, Kagome found an array of clothes. Most of the clothing was traditional kimonos, but there were a few more, modern shirts, pants and skirts as

well. None of the modern clothes were in her size so she chose a blue kimono and an obi in purple. Kagome noticed there was another door in the room,

there was a full bathroom. She looked longingly at the Jacuzzi tub, but chose to use the shower in the corner instead. She reveled in the feel of getting

clean, then once she got out, she towel-dried her hair and put on the borrowed kimono. She was struggling with the knot for the obi when there was a light

knock on the door. "Come in!" Kagome called. A dark-haired demoness stepped into the room. She looked human enough; her brown hair was tied back

into a simple bun. Of course, she had the pointed ears indicating that she was youkai, but her face was unadorned. Her eyes were a bright yellow, and they

reminded Kagome of her cat Buyo at home. "My name is Tsukino. I will be taking you to dinner. After that I will be at your disposal." Tsukino blinked at the

horrible attempt made at the obi knot. "Would you like some help with that?" Kagome looked down, then back at her, "Yes please." While fixing the knot

Tsukino looked up at Kagome, "How is it you are not afraid of me?" Kagome blinked, "My mother taught me to treat everyone as equals, and so until you

give me a reason to be afraid of you, why bother?" Tsukino smiled, "That is a good point." As Kagome followed Tsukino out of the room she asked, "So will

I finally get to meet my benefactor?" Tsukino nodded, "Lord Sesshomaru will be there." Kagome smiled, "Good, I want to speak to him about his dog."

Tsukino paused and turned to look at her, "His dog?" Kagome nodded, "Yes, I don't know what his name was, but he is a beautiful creature." Tsukino

blinked at her for a moment, and then said, "Lord Sesshomaru does not have a dog." She then turned and continued on the way to the dining room.

Kagome frowned and blinked at Tsukino's departing back, then hurried to catch up with her.

Tsukino showed her to her seat and left. Kagome wasn't the only person left in the room, but she didn't know that at first. She scanned the room slowly,

and then noticed someone standing in the shadows, looking out the window. Finally he turned. Kagome took in the regal stance and his pristine attire, "You

must be Lord Sesshomaru." He inclined his head, but said nothing. She giggled and thought, "Pets are sometimes so much like their owners it's scary." His

eyes narrowed, but he didn't comment on her laugh. He sat down just before servants came through the door laden with food and drinks. Kagome looked

at the food, "Are there more guests coming?" One of the servants blinked at her, "No milady. Why would you think that?" Kagome looked at the large

spread, "Well this is a lot of food for two people…isn't it?" He chuckled, "Obviously you are unaware of the appetite of a demon." The servant left her side

and Kagome looked at Sesshomaru and cocked her head, "So demons have to eat a lot do they?" Sesshomaru raised a brow, "Indeed." They were served,

and Sesshomaru began to eat in silence. Kagome noted he seemed to like meat the most. Preferably raw and bloody. Kagome cringed. Sesshomaru

swallowed and wiped his mouth, "Do you find my eating habits repulsive?" She licked her lips and shrugged, "To each his own." "Hn." They went back to

eating. Kagome paused, "So what is your dog's name. I never found out." Sesshomaru's shoulders stiffened, "He does not require a name." She frowned,

"You must call him something." Sesshomaru sat straighter, "You need not worry about his name. You will not see him again." Kagome fidgeted, "Have you

had him long?" "My entire life." She smiled, "I guess demon dogs live a long time then." Sesshomaru didn't answer so she said, "Was he hard to train? He

seemed to listen to me pretty well." Sesshomaru grimaced and a low growl rumbled through the room and suddenly he left. Kagome thought back on what

she had said, trying to figure out what had offended him so much. She was stumped, so she finished the rest of her meal and went wandering through the

house.


	3. Chapter 3

There were many unused rooms similar her own. Eventually, she came across a library. The books were not the type she usually read, but there were some

on demon culture and history. She figured she could at least read up on those and try to figure out how she had offended her affluent host. It was around

three before she finally got tired, and no one had come into the spacious library the entire time she was in there. She yawned and stretched, then put the

books away as she stared out the window, admiring the scenery in the pre-dawn light. She blinked and walked closer to the window, and then she smiled.

There was Lord Sesshomaru's dog walking through the yard toward the house. A bright light surrounded the dog, and shot into the sky. When it landed

back on the ground, Lord Sesshomaru was there, and the dog was nowhere to be seen. She tried to process what she had just seen, then thought on what

she had read. Did she understand that correctly? Was the dog Lord Sesshomaru? She stood there staring off into space pondering, until she heard the door

open to the library. She turned to find Sesshomaru in the doorway. Immediately she became nervous. She was absolutely sure she was not supposed to

know that Lord Sesshomaru was the dog she had groomed, "I-I'm sorry, I was just leaving to go to my room. Sorry if I was intruding." He did not step

aside when she reached the door, so she looked up at him, about to ask him to move when he sniffed delicately and his eyes narrowed. He snarled at her,

and she squeaked and backpedaled until she hit a wall. Sesshomaru followed her every step until he was only a few inches away from her, "Your scent

changed when I walked into the room. Your scent has never contained fear or," he sniffed again, "awareness. You know something, what is it?" Kagome

opened her mouth about to say she had no idea what he was talking about, when he snapped at her, "Do not think to lie to me. I will smell that on you

too." He had scented the coming lie before it had fully formed in her head. Her mouth closed quickly, and he caged her in with his eyes. He had yet to

touch her, "What do you know?" He bit out each word as if by enunciating them, they could penetrate her skull and the answers would bleed out on their

own. Kagome swallowed hard and decided on the truth, "I saw you change on your way in just now." His eyes widened and his pupils shrank, then she

blinked and his features were the hard mask they had always been. "You will not be leaving this estate." Sesshomaru swept out of the room leaving

Kagome standing there in shock.

She walked out of the room to find a demoness standing near the door. Her blonde hair was short and spiked, her eyes a piercing blue. Her ears were

pointed as was usual for a youkai and she had one thick white vertical stripe on her forehead. The demoness eyed Kagome critically, "I'm supposed to keep

you from leaving the building." Kagome frowned, "Just because I know your Lord is the dog I groomed?" Shock registered on the demoness' face before it

smoothed over and she nodded, "Let me take you to your room so you can get some sleep." Kagome sighed; she supposed she could get this straightened

out in the morning. "So what's your name," Kagome asked. The demoness glanced at her, "Kiomaru." Kagome nodded, "What do you do here normally?"

Kiomaru sighed, "Is this going to be a hundred and one questions until I agree to let you leave? It won't work you know." Kagome giggled, "No, I didn't

mean for it to sound that way, I'm sorry. I didn't realize that you aren't used to socializing. I just figured that since it sounds like you and I are going to be

spending a lot of time together until I leave, we should at least know a bit about each other." Kiomaru snorted, "That will not be necessary." Kagome's

shoulders slumped. They walked the rest of the way in silence, Kagome fidgeting with her obi the entire time. Kiomaru stopped at Kagome's door, "Here's

your room. I will be out here in the hall. Should you try to leave, I will know and you will regret it." Kagome resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at the

demoness, and entered her room. To her surprise, Tsukino was already in the room readying her sleeping yukata. Tsukino smiled at her, "Good evening

miss Kagome. Let me help you undress and ready for bed." Kagome sighed in relief at the presence of the much more sociable demon. She was reflecting

upon everything that had happened when realization hit, "That demon earlier wasn't bowing to me. Sesshomaru was behind me." Tsukino blinked up at her

in the middle of untying Kagome's obi, "Hmm?" Kagome shook her head, "Just trying to make sense of some things is all." Then the most important

realization struck her and she froze in shock while her mind reeled_, "No wonder he was so reluctant to let me shave his sanitary! Gah! I…touched…his-"_

Kagome squealed outwardly in shock and her face turned red. "No wonder he got mad!" Tsukino was staring at her oddly again. Tsukino said nothing of her

odd behavior. Finally, Kagome was properly attired for bed. As Tsukino left, Kagome heard a hushed conversation between the two demoness. It didn't

concern her so she simply shrugged and went to bed.

Kagome slept fitfully that night, and when she was awoken, she didn't feel rested at all. The demoness prodding her side was insistent, but Kagome did not

want to wake up. Tsukino, the one prodding her, was getting frustrated, until Kiomaru growled and flipped the bed. "There, she's awake." Kiomaru left the

room as Kagome was helped up by Tsukino. "What's with all the rush?" "Sorry, but Lord Sesshomaru requires your presence in the Library. He's been

waiting for you to get up for hours." "And this Sesshomaru will not wait any longer. It happens to be one in the afternoon. You have slept for longer than

eight of the required human hours and this Sesshomaru grows agitated by your blatant refusal to rise." Kagome was not a morning person, and she was

not happy with the way she was woken up. It didn't matter that it was no longer morning, because it was still morning for her, since she had been up so

late. "I'm sorry _Lord_ Sesshomaru, but I was up all night grooming your sorry ass, since apparently you can't get anyone to do it for you. I am not

accustomed to working on so much animal at once! In fact I probably only groom that much dog in a month's time! So excuse me for being completely

exhausted, but maybe you should learn what a _brush_ is!" Kagome huffed at the end of her tirade and crossed her arms over her chest glaring at the demon

lord. Tsukino had gasped at Kagome's outburst. No one had groomed Lord Sesshomaru since he was a child and in the care of his mother, and she was

rather surprised he hadn't needed someone sooner. However, _no one_ had ever spoken to Sesshomaru like that before. Sesshomaru's gaze snapped to the

demoness and she made a hasty retreat. Kagome was growing rather nervous now that she was fully awake and realized she was alone with the irate Inu-

Youkai that she had just insulted. Though he showed no outward signs of it, Kagome was sure he had to be mad. He was silent for so long Kagome had

blanked out and started imagining some of the things he might do to her if he was angry. All of the scenarios were bloody and painful. His baritone voice

startled her, "You would be wise to never speak to this Sesshomaru in that manner again." Kagome blinked at him, but didn't know what to say. He looked

over her attire and said, "You will dress and join this Sesshomaru in the sun room for lunch." His tone brooked no room for argument and he left without

even Kagome's acknowledgement. He had just stepped into the hall when Kagome murmured, "Arrogant dog." Sesshomaru's brow rose at the comment

she hadn't meant for him to hear, but he didn't dwell on it. Tsukino re-entered the room when her lord had left and quickly helped Kagome dress again.

"One of these days I should probably learn how to tie this myself. I might need it eventually." Tsukino smiled at her, "I will be glad to teach you after you

are finished with Lord Sesshomaru." Kagome chuckled, "I don't think I'll be here much longer." Tsukino blinked and straightened, "My Lord said you will not

be leaving, therefore you will not be leaving." Kagome frowned, "He can't keep me here like a prisoner!" Kiomaru poked her head in, "He can and he will.

Lord Sesshomaru always gets his way." Kagome pursed her lips, "We'll see about that won't we?"


	4. Chapter 4

Kagome was ushered down through the castle with Tsukino leading the way and Kiomaru following to make sure Kagome didn't run off unexpectedly. They

entered a room that was made of glass. The walls were glass, the ceiling was glass, and the floor was made of beautiful golden colored glass tiles. The

room was appropriately called the sunroom. Not only did the floor gleam golden as the sun, but also when the sky was clear, as it was today, the room was

filled with sunlight. It was beautiful, and Kagome immediately forgot that she was angry with the demon lord. "Wow…" Kagome murmured as she took in

the sights of the room. There was a large wooden table in the center of the room and once again like the evening before it was laden high with food.

Kagome's stomach growled loudly when the smell of the food reached her nose. She realized she was alone again with the Lord when she spied him again

looking out the window, then turned to see that both demoness' had disappeared again soundlessly. "Why are you always looking out the window?" "I am

merely ensuring that my home is safeguarded." Kagome frowned at his answer, "But isn't that what your guards are for?" She could see them patrolling

the tops of the walls. Sesshomaru merely replied with a "Hn." Then she thought of something, "You don't like being in here do you? When I was younger, I

found a little dog living on the streets. He was starving and sick. I nursed him back to health, but even though he had everything he needed, he still looked

out the window the way you are. Mama said he just wanted to be free, so I took him to a friend that had a large farm and he was happy there. Mama said

that once an animal tastes freedom, he will never be happy in a cage." Sesshomaru glanced at her from the corner of his eye, "Your mother is wise indeed.

Nevertheless, do not think to compare me to a mangy mutt. I am Inu, the great dog demon." Kagome rolled her eyes, "Arrogant much?" Sesshomaru

decided to ignore her remark. "We shall eat, and then discuss the conditions of your new home." Kagome glared at him. "I am _not_ staying here." "Hn," was

all Sesshomaru said before he sat down and began eating.

Kagome sighed and sat across from him. She watched him eat and wondered if he ate so daintily in his dog form. He didn't even look up at her, "Please

refrain from staring at my person. Most would consider doing so rude." Kagome was surprised he knew she was staring if he never looked up. She once

again focused on her food. Kagome was ravenous, but she didn't notice the gaze of the silent Lord upon her until she finished. He had long ago finished,

although he ate properly and had more than she had. Kagome finished chewing and swallowed, and then she wiped her face and parroted his earlier words

back to him, "Most would consider staring rude you know." Sesshomaru's brow rose and he grunted his usual noncommittal noise, and then he said, "This

Sesshomaru is above such things. Lords may do as they please." Kagome burst out laughing. As she did so, she fell out of her chair, but continued

laughing. Sesshomaru was staring at her with a bland expression. Finally, she got up and wiped her eyes, "Trust someone spoiled like you to say something

so childish." His face hardened, "I am no child." Kagome shook her head, "No, but you sounded like one." Sesshomaru growled, and then looked pointedly

away. Kagome had to force back another giggle fit at his behavior. Finally, when she was under control she said, "So we were going to discuss my

departure." He glared at her, "No. You will not be leaving," Kagome started to get mad, "I am not your prisoner! I will leave whenever I want! I'm already

late for work, I was supposed to be there hours ago." To prove her point she marched to the door. Sesshomaru was immediately in front of her. So quickly

in fact, that she ran into him. She fell onto her butt rubbing her poor nose that had smacked into Sesshomaru's chest. "You are not leaving. Arrangements

have already been made; you no longer work there. Your things have already been gathered from there and from your apartment. Your mother has been

made aware that you will now be here." She stared at him dumbstruck still on the floor. Finally she got up, "You have got to be kidding me! You cannot just

get rid of my job and my home like that! They wouldn't have let you." Sesshomaru lifted his head a bit in arrogance, "When you own the companies, it is

easy to get them to do what you want." She blinked, "You own my grooming salon and my apartments?" He shook his head, "Rather, I own the people who

own them." Kagome's mouth gaped, "Give me my job and apartment back!" Sesshomaru looked nonplussed. "No. And as such you now belong to me."

"The hell I do!" Kagome spun on her heel and marched to another door that led outside. Sesshomaru's brow quirked, but he let her reach the door this

time. She opened it and marched out.

The surrounding area was another garden, but she quickly realized that there was no escape from this area since it was surrounded by a moat big enough

and deep enough to be a small lake. She stalked back into the sunroom to see Sesshomaru lounging in a chair. She stuck her nose up at him and marched

out the entry door. After nearly twenty minutes, she finally found the front door and walked out. She was wondering at the lack of people trying to stop her

when she reached the gate. "Open up!" The guard glanced at her, then at Lord Sesshomaru who was trailing behind her. At Lord Sesshomaru's slight

shake, the guard shook his head, "Sorry Miss. I can't do that." Her mouth opened in shock and she spun around to see Sesshomaru standing there with a

bored expression. "You!" She exclaimed, "You tell them to let me out right now! I am not your possession, so you let me out!" "No." was his only reply. She

let out a frustrated scream and made to hit him. Instantly she found both hands encased within Sesshomaru's. She was shocked that he had moved so

quickly. His lip lifted in a snarl, "Never again will you attempt to assault my person or you will find yourself in great pain." To prove his point he squeezed

her wrists slightly, using enough pressure for her to feel the strength in his hands, but not enough to hurt her much. Kagome quickly shut up and stopped

moving as she eyed her captor. Fury was waiting in her eyes tinged with fear, but she held her emotions in check. Sesshomaru finally dropped her hands

and inclined his head. "You are free to roam the castle at will, but stay away from the front gate." Sesshomaru turned on his heel and left her. Tears were

forming because she didn't want to stay here with the callous demon lord Sesshomaru. She wanted more than anything to go home to her mother's and

curl up with Buyo in her bed so she could forget about today. Apparently, that was not going to happen. She followed the walls of the castle and found a

lone tree that was close enough to the wall. She climbed it carefully and once she got to the top she peered over the wall. It was a very long drop to the

bottom. Too far for her. "You'll hurt yourself if you jump down." Kagome shrieked and nearly fell out of the tree when Kiomaru's voice came from a foot

above her. "Where did you come from?" Kagome said once she regained her footing and found her amidst the branches. "Tch, I've been here most of the

day. You just happened to climb up my tree." "I was trying to find a way out of here." Kagome admitted. Kiomaru raised a brow, "Did you try the front

gate?" Kagome sighed, "I'm not allowed to go through the front gate." Kiomaru chuckled, "It would be wise for you to just stay until he tires of you."

Kagome felt as if she were going to cry again, "I just want to go home." Kiomaru rolled her eyes and snagged Kagome around the wrist. She found herself

dragged from the tree and toward a large building by the castle. "Where are we going?" "To the stables. There's someone I think you would love to meet."

Kagome blinked hard when they entered the stables. There were no windows in here so it was very dark. When her eyes adjusted, Kagome gasped. There

were dragons in here. Most of them were fearsome, angry-looking creatures. Kiomaru kept dragging her until she was stopped by a large steel door.

Kiomaru opened it and shoved her in, then shut it behind her. "Have fun!" Kiomaru called cheerfully as she left the stable.


	5. Chapter 5

There was one window in here, but it was high up, and most of the room was kept in shadows. She tried the door, but it was too heavy for her. She looked

around the room frantically, wondering if anything was kept in here. There were no sounds, but she couldn't help but feel as if she were being watched.

"Hello?" She called out tentatively. There was no response, but the window suddenly shut and Kagome was blanketed in darkness. She squeaked, and held

very still to avoid falling down. Then she felt something brush against her leg and she swallowed. Suddenly an electric light flared on and she looked down

to see a baby dragon the color of the night sky. She blinked and smiled. The dragon growled and tried to bite her. She yelped and backed away. Then the

little dragon began to chase her, growling and shooting little flame bursts. Kagome did the only thing she could; she ran screaming. Around and around the

room they ran until the racket caught the attention of the stable master. He swung the door open and he found himself with an armful of human followed

by the youngest member of the stable a little dragon called Chiisai Hinotama. He chuckled and looked at the terrified human who cried, "He's gonna eat

me!" He laughed and dropped her. Chiisai Hinotama gurgled and surged toward her again. "Easy little one, she's human." The dragon cocked his head, and

the stable master said, "Humans are fragile. You must not bite." Chiisai Hinotama blinked his large red eyes at Kagome and made a purring sound. Slowly

he waddled over to her and butted her leg with his head. Kagome smiled and giggled, then got brave and reached down to pet him on the head. He made a

pleased sound and nuzzled her hand. "How did you get in there anyway? That door should have been too heavy for a human to move." Kagome

straightened and looked at him, "Kiomaru shoved me in here." He frowned and shook his head, "That girl causes more trouble…" He ushered Kagome out of

the room and Kagome peered out at the dragons in the rest of the stable. She saw a cute yellow dragon that seemed to be purring at her as Chiisai

Hinotama had. She started to reach out to pet it when the stable master said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you. She's the meanest dragon here." To prove

his point she lashed out with teeth the size of Kagome's face and snarled. Kagome jerked back just in time to not lose an arm. The stable master led her

over to another stable, "This is Ah-Un. He is a gentle dragon. You can pet him if you want." She saw a large olive colored dragon with a thick bristly mane.

He lifted his head to nuzzle her, when she was surprised by another head following the first. "The left head is Ah and the right head is Un. He is Lord

Sesshomaru's personal dragon. Rin-san enjoys him greatly." Kagome blinked, "Who is Rin?" The stable master glanced at her, "You have not met her yet?

She is the only other human in the castle. It is not often Lord Sesshomaru entertains human guests." Kagome nodded while she petted the two heads

nuzzling her. A handful of guards entered the stables. "Jiru-sempai, Fourth patrol is in need of mounts." One of the guards glanced at Kagome, "You might

want to get away from here for a while. Some of these dragons tend to be a bit rowdy." Kagome looked back at the yellow dragon that seemed to be

eyeing her with a keen interest. Kagome nodded and waved goodbye to Jiru, and Ah-Un. Deciding that inside the house was the best place for her; she

went in and started wandering the halls.

Absently she wondered where the other human was, and whether she was a prisoner as well. Kagome was walking down a long corridor when a demon

burst out of a room and fled screaming. Kagome peered cautiously into the room and saw Sesshomaru sitting there calmly at a desk. She blinked at the

direction the demon had fled, then back into the room at Sesshomaru who didn't seem to be doing anything other than writing. "What was that all about?"

Kagome asked him. He glanced up at her, not at all surprised by her presence since he had scented her when she had entered the hall. "He is a fool."

Kagome frowned and stared at him. "Why is that?" "This Sesshomaru merely insinuated that the accounting had better be right. Apparently he found an

error." Sesshomaru murmured as he looked over the papers in front of him. "Did he fix it?" Sesshomaru glanced at the paper, "Hn, this Sesshomaru

supposes he shall have to retrieve him." Kagome tilted her head and walked over to the papers. "This one?" At Sesshomaru's nod, she looked it over, and

then smiled. "Easy fix…" she picked up the demon's forgotten pen and corrected the mistake. Sesshomaru glanced at the paper, and grunted, then silently

slid another paper toward her. For hours, the two worked over the massive pile of papers. Kagome was so absorbed in her work she didn't notice the time

until Jaken entered the room, "Dinner Milord." Sesshomaru put his pen down and Kagome did the same. Kagome stretched and blinked at the darkness

outside. "I can't believe we were working that long." Sesshomaru nodded minutely, "It is not often this Sesshomaru can stand to be around someone long

enough to finish this much work." Kagome smiled. "Although your human stench was testing this Sesshomaru's patience." Kagome's smile disappeared,

replaced by an angry frown, "Hey! I don't smell bad!" Sesshomaru merely rose and made a non-committal noise. Kagome stared after him furiously as he

left the room, then sighed and followed him. Dinner was once again served in a substantial amount. "How is it that you can eat so much, but you don't

seem to gain any extra weight?" Kagome was glaring at his copious amount of food. "Hn, you do remember the size of this Sesshomaru's natural form?"

She blinked at him, "Oh. So when you eat, you're eating for the size of your beast?" Sesshomaru did not return an answer for a long while. "Not long ago

that would have put fear into a human such as yourself." Kagome shrugged, "Different times now." "Indeed." Kagome realized that something had been

bugging her all throughout the meal, "I heard talk of another human here. Her name is Rin?" Sesshomaru nodded and Kagome continued, "Why doesn't

she eat with you as well?" Sesshomaru made a sound of annoyance, "She rather prefers eating in the gardens with her maids." Kagome smiled, "She

sounds like she enjoys nature." "Hn." Kagome chuckled, "And it sounds like she does things that displease you. I take it you would rather her eat in here

with you?" He nodded, "It would be preferable." "She sounds like my kind of girl. So when can I meet her?" The doors opened and admitted a gaggle of

females. "You may meet her now if you wish."


	6. Chapter 6

Kagome eyed the group trying to spot the human woman. "Sesshomaru-sama Rin has found a new flower in the gardens." Kagome blinked down at the

young human girl of whom everyone must been speaking. She had no idea the human was a child. "Rin, this Sesshomaru wishes to introduce you to

Kagome." Rin clasped her hands together and bowed lightly at the waist, "Konnichiha hajimemashite." Since Kagome was still seated, she bowed her head,

"Konnichiha." Rin smiled and walked closer to Kagome, "Rin has never seen a human in the castle before." She studied Kagome carefully, "Do you like

flowers?" Kagome nodded, "I do very much. My favorites are carnations. There are so many different meanings for each of the colors; it's like a secret

code." Rin's smile widened, "You know the language of the flowers as well?" Kagome nodded and Rin turned to Sesshomaru, "Rin likes Kagome-san very

much! May Rin and Kagome-san go out to the gardens?" Sesshomaru nodded and Rin took Kagome's hand, dragging her off toward the direction of the

flower garden. Kagome spent a few hours out in the garden helping Rin search for new flowers. She knew she should not have been amazed by the array of

flowers since the estate was already so opulent, but as soon as her eyes had touched upon the garden, she gasped in awe. The garden almost looked as

though it were merely a field of flowers, but a careful eye returned the subtle, kept look of the otherwise wild field. Daffodils grew near sunflowers and

roses, poppies were surrounded by daisies and dandelions, but the focal point of the garden was a large Sakura tree in full bloom. Kagome was amazed to

find moonflowers as well in full bloom; the garden was beautiful at night. Springtime was Kagome's favorite time of the year followed closely by Christmas,

even though it was an American holiday. She breathed in the scent of the garden deeply, then was startled by the baritone voice behind her, "Rin it is time

for bed." Kagome spun around her hand over her heart. "Goodnight Kagome-san!" Rin skipped off inside leaving Kagome and Sesshomaru in the garden.

Sesshomaru handed her a flower, "Do not dwell upon the action, but upon the language of the rose you hold." Kagome blinked down at the flower and

studied it for a moment. The rose was a dark pink hue. She thought hard, it had been a while since she had studied the language of the flowers. Surely, he

was not attracted to her? With some relief, she realized that the dark pink rose was for gratitude. She bowed lightly at the waist, "I understand. You are

very welcome." She rose with a smile on her face. "Rest. Tomorrow you will rise early; this Sesshomaru has a job for you." Kagome blinked, and then

sighed, wondering when she was going to be able to talk him out of keeping her here. He turned to walk away and Kagome realized something, "Wait! I

don't know how to get to my room!" He paused, "This Sesshomaru will show you once, and then you will be on your own." She sighed in relief, "Thank

you." This time she took note of the hallways she passed through. She was almost positive she could at least find her way back to the garden. Perhaps

tomorrow she would be able to explore some more and get her bearings. He stopped at her door, "This Sesshomaru demands you to be up by sunrise and

in the sun room for breakfast." Kagome nodded, "I'll be there." He turned away and disappeared down the hall. As she got into her room, she smiled as she

realized she had time for a bath. She filled the tub with steaming water, and after struggling with the obi, she climbed in. As she soaked in the hot water,

she moaned in pleasure. She didn't realize how badly her body needed a soak in hot water. "Comfy?" The voice came from the further into the room.

Kagome screamed because the voice was definitely male and she was currently in the bath.

"Oh relax. I can't even see you. Besides, I like men anyhow. I noticed Lord Sesshomaru gave you a rose." Kagome was still leery, so she drug a towel into

the water with her before answering, "So? He gave me a flower to thank me. Who are you and what are you doing in my room." The voice chuckled, "Now

why would he give you a room as nice as this one, and give you a flower? Lord Sesshomaru does not thank people, he just lets them live. What are you to

him?" Kagome huffed, "I am nothing to him and as soon as I can get him to let me leave, I-" "Oh ho! So he's keeping you here?" The voice was quiet for

the moment, and Kagome said, "You still didn't tell me who you are." The voice chuckled, "Ta ta my sweet." She heard footsteps and then the door opened

and shut. Kagome cut her bath short and climbed warily out of the tub, grabbing a dry towel on the way. She peered cautiously out into the room, and

seeing that it was empty, retreated to the bathroom to get her sleeping yukata on. Finally, Kagome went to bed. That night she dreamt of dragons chasing

her through roses. **She ran harder and harder, but the faster she ran, the closer the dragon got. The castle loomed close ahead, but she never **

**seemed to get any nearer. **Kagome woke screaming as the dragon gripped her shoulder. The dragon was shaking her awake, "Kagome-san! Wake up."

She stopped screaming once she realized the dragon shaking her was not a dragon at all. Tsukino sighed in relief when Kagome stopped screaming. "Your

screaming has woken the entire household. What is the problem?" Kagome blinked, "I was having a nightmare about dragons." "Tch typical." Kagome

glanced over at the speaker, surprised to see Kiomaru. She blinked at another familiar voice, "It's your fault Kiomaru. You shoved her in there with Chiisai

Hinotama. Humans aren't used to dragons anymore." Jiru was in the room too. She sat up and looked around to see a large handful of people in the room.

She was surprised she didn't see Sesshomaru himself, but she guessed he wanted to stay as far away from the screaming as possible. Tsukino sniffed her

delicately, "Why do you smell of roses?" Kagome frowned, realizing belatedly that she could smell it too. "Could it be that rose over there?" Tsukino shook

her head, "They are not the same scent; yours is different. You never smelled like this before." Kagome shook her head, "I was running through roses in

my dream, but that doesn't explain why I smell like them." The room got very quiet and Kagome looked to the door to find the source of the silence.

Sesshomaru was standing there, "This Sesshomaru is relieved that you have ceased with your screaming." As he entered the room, everyone filed out

behind him.

"You dreamt of a dragon? Describe it." Kagome tried to remember, but every time she focused on a feature of the dragon, it slipped away. "I…can't seem

to remember." Sesshomaru nodded, "Therefore it may not have been a dragon at all, but a trick played by Kymela." Kagome tilted her head, "Who is

Kymela?" Sesshomaru looked off into the distance, "The bane of this Sesshomaru's existence. Kymela…fancies this Sesshomaru." Kagome blinked, "Have

you told her you aren't interested?" Sesshomaru growled low, "This Sesshomaru has made it clear to him on multiple occasions that there is no interest

returned." Kagome's eyes widened as it clicked, _"Besides, I like men anyhow. I noticed Lord Sesshomaru gave you a rose."_ Kymela was the man in her

room. Moreover, he was jealous of the attention Sesshomaru was showing her, innocent as it may be. She then began to giggle uncontrollably at the

thought of another male fawning over an irritated Sesshomaru. He narrowed his eyes dangerously at her, but remained silent until she quieted once again.

Kagome wiped her eyes and said, "You know one way to get him to leave you alone is if you are in a relationship. He might get the picture then." She

blinked, "Although I think you'll have a hard time getting anyone to get along with your arrogance." Sesshomaru was silent for a bit, then he said, "Then I

suppose you'll have to fill that slot won't you?" Kagome paled and gaped like a fish, "I am not going to even _pretend_ to be your girlfriend! You're a

completely cold, lifeless _jerk_!" In a flash, Sesshomaru had Kagome pinned to the bed, his body resting atop hers, and his face inches from her own. Her

breath stopped, as he murmured, "I assure you, this Sesshomaru is _not_ cold or lifeless. You would be wise in the future not to accuse this Sesshomaru of

such things." She started breathing again and whispered, "You're still a jerk." His mouth twitched, "Perhaps."


	7. Chapter 7

He rose slowly and straightened his clothing. She realized for the first time that Sesshomaru was not wearing his traditional kimono. Today he was wearing

a pair of well-fitting jeans and a shirt that matched the color of his blue crescent moon on his head. Of course, he had not changed from his regular black

boots, but he looked very good in modern clothes. She was surprised to find he had stripes on his wrists that matched his cheeks. His hair seemed to be

braided as well. She looked back into his face, "It doesn't help your Kymela situation when you dress like that." 'Although,' she thought, 'He could probably

make a potato sack look wonderful.' Sesshomaru looked down at his clothing and back up to her, "There is nothing wrong with what this Sesshomaru is

wearing." She nodded, "Exactly." His head tilted, "Explain." Kagome was still sitting on her bed, and she crossed her legs, "Well for starters if you're trying

to not attract his attention, it would help if your clothes fit a bit looser. You can see nearly every muscle which he probably likes." Sesshomaru narrowed his

eyes, "Would you have this Sesshomaru wear sweat clothes?" he sneered. An image of him in sweat clothes, dripping with sweat came to her mind

unbidden. She shook her head, trying to remove the image. "Hmm, I guess it would be kind of hard to tone your image down." Sesshomaru had a look of

satisfaction on his face, but didn't say anything. Kagome blinked at him, "I thought you liked wearing your other clothes." His chin raised a notch, "This

Sesshomaru wears what he pleases." Kagome sighed, "I was only curious." "Hn, it is casual Friday and this Sesshomaru wished to participate." Sesshomaru

spoke as if he dared Kagome to berate him for that fact. She sat up straighter, "Does everyone in the castle participate?" thinking back on the clothes she

saw the employees wearing, she realized they were all in uniforms of some sort. The maids wore butter yellow kimonos with black and white obis, and the

guards wore a combination of greens and browns, which Kagome assumed, were to help blend in with the colors outside. Although she saw a few guards,

wearing bright gold kimonos like Kiomaru. She didn't know why they were different yet, but she suspected they had special jobs. She also remembered the

servant boy that brought her the extension cord was wearing a magenta kimono and royal blue obi. "The staff wears modern clothing befitting their status."

Kagome nodded as he explained, "Maids wear the traditional American uniform of black dress with white undershirt and petticoat, white socks and black

pumps. We originally were going to use hosiery, but demon claws rendered the flimsy material useless. Common guards wear a uniform similar to their

own, but in a style called 'camo'. Captains of the guard wear a uniform of white instead of their usual gold, and pages wear magenta button shirts with blue

slacks." Kagome blinked, "So it really isn't casual at all. Seems kind of nerve-wracking to me." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at her, "What this

Sesshomaru does with his staff is not your concern." Kagome rolled her eyes at him, "Whatever. So it's nearly dawn; I guess I should get dressed so we

can eat?" Sesshomaru nodded once, and then a glint came into his eyes, "This Sesshomaru will have your morning clothes brought in. Bathe, as you smell

of fear and the despised Kymela. Kagome nodded and sighed, and then Sesshomaru left.

Kagome decided on the shower, despite her body's silent plea for a long soak that had yet to be fulfilled. When she emerged from the bathroom wrapped in

a towel, after drying her hair, she found a red dress on the bed, which had been made. She glanced at the dress, grimacing when she saw how short it

was, and how much cleavage showed. She went to the armoire, set on changing into something a bit more decent. She found the whole thing devoid of all

of its contents. Her jaw dropped, he had the audacity to clear out all other options. There were no undergarments in any of the drawers either. She growled

and lifted the dress to find a lacy thong and bra in the same shade as the red dress. She swallowed hard and finally put on the provocative clothing. She

walked over to the mirror and blinked at the image there. She had never realized she possessed curves like that. She smiled at the suggestive neckline;

carefully displaying her breasts, while leaving enough still hidden as to be moderately decent and the slits on the side of the already short hemline of the

skirt. She decided to pull her hair up into a high ponytail, tying it with a hair scrunchy on the vanity. She grimaced at the red stiletto heels standing near

the door. With a sigh, she put those on as well. Gathering her courage she stepped out into the hallway, vaguely wondering what Sesshomaru had in store

for her. Amazingly, Kagome found her way to the sunroom without help. She opened the door to see Sesshomaru in deep conversation with a group of

men…make those demons. She swallowed hard and mentally bashed Sesshomaru over the head with the pointy red shoes for making her wear these

clothes in front of so many men, but remained silent outwardly. Conversation suddenly ceased and the group of male demons turned toward her, "This is

the one this Sesshomaru spoke of. She possesses great talent." A blush rose on her cheeks at the compliment, although she wondered to what talent he

was referring, and she stepped forward to meet them head-on.

"My name is Kagome. You must be friends of Lord Sesshomaru's?" A demon spoke up; he was a tall demon, nearly as tall as Sesshomaru, only shy two

inches. He had ebony skin, dark chocolate eyes and long silver hair that reached his waist. His face had shockingly orange stripes similar to Sesshomaru's,

but they were thinner and there were three instead of two. His forehead revealed a yellow shape that looked like a banana. "We are not quite friends…more

like colleagues. My name is Lord Nambino of the silverback tribe in Africa." Kagome shook his hand, "Silverback…you're a gorilla youkai?" He nodded and

another youkai stepped forward, "I am Lord Ricardo, of the Tauren clan located in Spain." She blinked at him; he was rather short as he was three inches

shorter than her own 5'1". He had tanned skin and no cheek marks, but the symbol of a brown bull's horns on his head and waist length dark brown hair.

Kagome was starting to get the hang of this, "You are a bull youkai." He nodded. Another demon reached forward. He was the tallest demon here, topping

Sesshomaru's height by three inches, making him 6'1". He was pale skinned with black and white hair that was a modest length only reaching just past his

shoulders. His markings were a green bamboo shoot on his forehead and one black stripe on each cheek. "I am Li-Wu, Lord of the Panda tribe in China."

Kagome smiled at him, and then turned to the last demon in the room.

He was five inches taller than she was, and when she locked eyes with him, she had to repress a shudder. He was very handsome, but for some reason she

got the willies looking at him. He had red eyes outlined in kohl, different from the color of an enraged demon. He had golden skin, and hair that was a

strange translucent red-brown simultaneously. Kagome wondered about the color until he said that he was a scorpion youkai. On his forehead, he had the

symbol of a pair of scorpion claws and a tail, and his cheeks stripes were scorpion tails. All his markings were in black. "I would have thought your

markings would have been red or brown…sorry if that was rude." He smiled and Kagome blanched, this guy was just plain scary! "My parents thought

something along those very lines when I was born. I was thought to bring destruction to the land and my parents had me killed. Somehow, I overpowered

my executioner at only a day old and earned the name Daghishat, it means darkness. Although I am technically the rightful heir of the tribe back in Cairo, I

will not be recognized until I do something monumentally good. For some reason I exude evil, although I assure you I am the kindest one in this room."

Kagome blinked, "You're from Egypt?" He nodded and she sighed, "What is it like there?" He chuckled, "I have not been there in many years, but last I

remember it is very hot and covered in sand." Kagome laughed, and the others, aside from Sesshomaru of course, chuckled as well.


	8. Chapter 8

Sesshomaru turned to the others, "Now as this Sesshomaru stated before, he is attempting to get an unwanted admirer to back off, so this Sesshomaru will

be using Kagome as a stand in. This Sesshomaru would greatly appreciate support." The others nodded, "The despised one shall be here any moment, so

let us be seated and continue our discussion." Sesshomaru placed Kagome near to his own seat. Her heart jumped into her throat when his hand came to

rest on her hip as the arm curled around her back. The demons began talking about problems in their lands and gave suggestions on how to fix them.

Sesshomaru and Daghishat were the only ones that did not speak of problems, but they gave plenty of answers. Kagome wondered at the fact that

Sesshomaru did not speak of any of his own problems. She understood Daghishat's position because he was exiled from his own land, but she just could

not figure out why Sesshomaru didn't input his own dilemmas. She wondered if it was because of pride, since he seemed to be a very prideful demon. Then

she wondered if it was possible for him to just know all the answers. It would be an incredible feat, but Kagome was sure it was pride keeping Sesshomaru

silent about his problems.

The door opened once again and another demon strode through. She was sure she was seeing things. The demon striding through the door was wearing

gold lamé. His red hair was nearly as long as Sesshomaru's, but it spiked out at the bottom and in different directions at the top. His eyes were also red,

but of a darker color than Daghishat's; this demon's eyes were the color of blood. "Good morning Sesshomaru-sama…" his voice trailed off when he saw

Kagome wrapped in his arm. He narrowed his eyes at her and bared his teeth. "I thought as much." He growled. Kagome finally recognized that this was

indeed Kymela, and that he was definitely the one that was in her room while she was bathing. "Kymela," Sesshomaru growled. Daghishat smiled and

stood, "Ah, so you are the one Sesshomaru-sama spoke of. It is a pleasure to meet you tiger. Will you be joining us for breakfast?" He had the desired

effect. When Daghishat had risen, he had drawn the tiger youkai's attention to himself, and when he smiled, Kymela turned pale as a ghost. His eyes

widened to comical proportions, and he stammered, "N-n-no I w-was just coming t-t-t-to say g-good morning to Sesshom-maru-s-sama." He then turned

and nearly ran from the room. Sesshomaru sighed as Daghishat sat, "This Sesshomaru thanks you. It has been difficult to remove the tiger from This

Sesshomaru's person."

Discussions continued and there were no more interruptions from the lovesick tiger youkai. Kagome even interjected her opinions on things, which

surprised the gathered demons greatly. The first time she had, the entire table went silent as they stared at her and pondered what she had said. Finally,

the men chuckled and found that she had a sound opinion and that it could probably work. After what seemed an eternity to Kagome, breakfast ended and

the demons split up. Although she found out that Sesshomaru was not yet giving her up. She sighed as Sesshomaru brought her to his study again. He

glanced to the door and growled before jerking Kagome into his lap. She squeaked in indignation before Sesshomaru growled low into her ear, "The tiger is

near." Kagome huffed and settled herself more comfortably, inadvertently nestling herself into his groin. At his gasp, she snapped her head toward him to

see him swallow hard, and then expression left his face once more. Kagome blinked, still not realizing what she had done.

The door had been left open, and finally Kymela poked his head into the door, "Sesshomaru-sama I wanted to speak with you." He glared daggers at

Kagome and stepped into the room. Sesshomaru placed his hand on Kagome's thigh, which was conveniently bared due to the short length of the dress. It

had the desired effect on Kagome; her breath hitched and the smell of her arousal filled the room when his long fingers drew small circles on her leg.

Kymela seemed undeterred and walked over to the desk. Sesshomaru's hand slipped toward the inner thigh and her arousal increased. Her nipples pearled

through the lace of the bra and the filmy material of the dress. Her breath hitched and she shifted uncomfortably, once again brushing Sesshomaru's groin.

The smell of her arousal and her brushing against him was nearly too much for the demon lord. Knowing Kymela suspected that this was a one sided

arousal, Sesshomaru shifted his hand a bit higher until his fingers touched the lace at her hip. His eyes widened fractionally as he found the tiny scrap of

lace. He had ordered a maid to get her some suggestive clothing, but he had no idea she had gone so far as to include the undergarments. When he

slipped a finger under the lace, she shifted again and Sesshomaru found himself growing hard, which of course had Kagome squirming again. When

Sesshomaru's own arousal filled the room, Kymela stepped back uncertainly. Finally Kagome yelled, "Oh for Kami's sake, say what you came to say, and

get out! He isn't interested in you!" Kymela's lower lip trembled and his eyes watered before he ran from the room.

Kagome sighed, relieved that they didn't have to go any further. When she tried to rise, Sesshomaru growled and did not release her. She turned her face

toward him, and her eyes widened when she saw the edges of his eyes tinged red. With effort, Sesshomaru managed to come back to his senses and

release her. He abruptly left the room as soon as she vacated the confines of his lap. Kagome was standing there bewildered, trying to figure out exactly

what had happened. She didn't know much about demon culture, but she did know that their eyes usually turned red when they were angry. She had

learned so far that Lord Sesshomaru did not show much emotion, so she was curious what it meant that his eyes had changed. She was sure he hadn't

gotten mad about anything…unless he was mad about her yelling at Kymela. She thought that was odd since she knew he wanted the tiger away from his

person. With a sigh, she left the room in search of someone who might help her figure this mess out.

Oddly enough, there were no other demons anywhere. She searched high and low for even one, but they were all missing. 'Maybe they all got a vacation all

of the sudden?' She shook her head at that silly notion and headed to the stables to talk to Jiru-san. The dragons were all there, but Jiru was not. Of

course, if he was in the room with Chiisai Hinotama he didn't answer and she wasn't able to open the door herself anyway. She stood in the courtyard

debating what to do, then decided to try the guards at the front gate. It was locked, but there was no one in sight. "Hello?" she called out, but got no

answer. She growled and headed back to the house and searched again. After a half an hour, Kagome stumbled upon Rin picking flowers in one of the

gardens. "Rin-san, where is everyone?" Rin looked up, "Kagome-chan! Rin does not know. Rin's teacher left in the middle of the lesson. Sesshomaru-sama

will not be pleased. Rin didn't want to wait in the classroom any longer, so Rin came out to get more flowers." Kagome chuckled, "Well, I guess there is

nothing to do but join you until someone returns." Rin nodded sharply, "Rin will make pretty flower rings for Rin and Kagome-chan to wear." Kagome

giggled and joined Rin in the sun-warmed grass. After an hour, Rin and Kagome were covered in flowers and laughing so hard they had tears in their eyes.

Rin was telling her of the time she had decorated Jaken as such. "Sesshomaru-sama even smiled a little!" Kagome laughed again as she lay with Rin in the

grass, imagining the sour look on the Kappa's face. A shadow suddenly loomed over Kagome and she glanced up from the prone position to see

Sesshomaru staring down at her. "We have life in this desolate wasteland!" Kagome cried mirthfully. Sesshomaru raised a brow, "This Sesshomaru does

not see a desolate wasteland." Kagome snorted, he was so dense. She got up and looked up at him, "Where did everyone go? Rin was left alone in her

classroom and we couldn't find anyone! Not even a guard. I think someone is slacking!" "You were perfectly secure. They left in fear of this Sesshomaru's

spike in youkai." Kagome blinked dumbly at him, "Huh?" He spoke slowly as if to a child, "This Sesshomaru's power spiked and they feared for their lives.

They shall return soon as I am now calm."


	9. Chapter 9

"Kagome propped her hands on her hips, why were you mad at me anyway? I thought you _wanted_ Kymela gone. Why are you mad at me for yelling at

him?" Sesshomaru furrowed his brows at her, "This Sesshomaru was not angered by your actions." Kagome tilted her head thinking, "Then why were your

eyes red, and why did you leave so abruptly?" He leaned closer to her, "If it is not something that you can perceive, this Sesshomaru does not see why it is

his duty to tell you." Kagome flushed from the close proximity and then his words permeated her racing thoughts. Surely, he couldn't mean they also

changed color when aroused. Sesshomaru stood back to his full height and glanced at Rin, "It is nearly lunch time. Go and wash up Rin." Rin nodded, and

off she went. Kagome wouldn't meet his eyes, and a mirthful gleam entered Sesshomaru's. "Hn, I believe I shall dress you as such for the remainder of

your time here." Kagome had forgotten that she was still wearing the skimpy clothing, her outrage quickly showed on her face, "You give me back normal

clothes right now or I will simply begin wearing your bed sheets as clothes!" His eyes widened slightly and he swallowed. He knew she meant that she

would wear them toga-style, but an image of her wearing nothing but his red silk sheets, sprawled out across his bed, slipped unbidden into his head. He

blinked the image away, but not before thinking that her raven locks would look incredible spread across his sheets. Sesshomaru let none of his inner

turmoil show, merely saying, "Hn," before turning away and walking toward the house. Kagome sighed and, as she had before, she followed him inside.

The others returned as quietly as they had left. Kagome hadn't been aware that they were even in the castle until she arrived with Sesshomaru in the

dining room. There was a big commotion of people bustling, trying to get lunch ready and Kagome watched in awe at the synchronicity. Sesshomaru sat in

his seat and Kagome stood uncertainly until he raised a brow at her and looked pointedly at the other chair near his right. Kagome sighed and took the

seat. Food was placed just as Rin entered the room. The room was silent until Kymela entered the room. Sesshomaru merely glared until Kymela finally

looked away and said, "I respectfully ask to take lunch with you." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes and grunted. Kymela looked up and Sesshomaru nodded

curtly, "This Sesshomaru will allow you to eat with us this day." Kymela visibly relaxed and sat across from Rin who giggled, "Tora-san, did you know that

you have a leaf in your hair?" Kymela blinked, and felt his hair, finding the offending leaf almost immediately. He chuckled, "I suppose it got there when I

was tumbling." Rin tilted her head as a servant took the leaf from Kymela, "Why would you tumble?" He shrugged, "Youkai do it for fun sometimes."

Kagome snorted and started giggling as she imagined Sesshomaru tumbling around. She laughed even harder when Rin asked innocently, "Rin has never

seen Sesshomaru-sama tumble." He huffed, "This Sesshomaru does not tumble." Lunch was nearly over when Sesshomaru stiffened and growled. Everyone

looked at him quizzically until the doors opened and Jaken walked in and closed the door behind him, "Apologies Sesshomaru-sama but Haruki-ue has

arrived and wished to speak with-" his speech was ended with a squawk when the doors opened suddenly and he fell onto his face. "Itoko, how have you

been?" Kagome blinked, was she seeing double? A man looking almost exactly like Sesshomaru had just walked through the door.

"Haruki, this Sesshomaru was not expecting you. What brings you?" Sesshomaru did not rise, but Kymela did. Haruki sighed, "Can't I just come to see my

favorite cousin?" Sesshomaru raised a brow, "This Sesshomaru is your only cousin." Haruki laughed, "Exactly my point!" Haruki tilted his head, "Who's this

cutie?" Sesshomaru blinked, until he realized Haruki was looking at Kymela, who practically had stars in his eyes. A blush tinted Kymela's cheeks.

Sesshomaru let the corner of his mouth lift ever so slightly, "This is Kymela. Kymela, this is Taisho Haruki, this Sesshomaru's cousin." Haruki looked at

Kymela, with a sense of wonder in his eyes. The two seem to hit it off immediately and Sesshomaru was pleased. Kagome didn't know what to think of

the situation, but since Sesshomaru was happy, Kagome was sure her life would be a little bit easier. Jaken finally got up off the floor, and glared daggers

at Haruki, while Sesshomaru rose and motioned for Kagome to rise as well, "Haruki would you please join this Sesshomaru in his study? This Sesshomaru

should like to catch up with you." Haruki nodded, and turned to follow Sesshomaru and Kagome out of the room. Rin jumped up as well and skipped out of

the room. This left Kymela to follow along like a lost puppy. Rin veered off to the garden, but Kymela followed until the door to Sesshomaru's study shut in

his face. His shoulders slumped, and he trailed away dejectedly. Sesshomaru sat in his chair and motioned for Kagome and Haruki to sit as well. Haruki

started first, "I see you have finally decided to take a mate." Kagome flushed red and sputtered incomprehensively. Sesshomaru's mouth twitched, which

was the most Kagome had ever seen from the stoic demon lord. "I am not his mate!" Kagome finally got out. Haruki tilted his head at her, "The scent

lingering in this room would prove otherwise…or was I wrong in my assumption that you are not a prostitute. You are dressed as one although you do not

act as one I have ever seen." After a pregnant pause, Kagome exploded. She leaped out of her chair, "I AM NOT A PROSTITUTE! It's his fault that I'm

dressed like this!" She turned on Sesshomaru, "You practically kidnap me, keep me here against my will, dress me like a slut, parade me in front of your-

your-demon buddies, fondle me when the actions are not wanted, and then you just sit there like you have done NOTHING WRONG! Excuse me _my lord_

while I just bend over backwards and fall to your whims! You are such an ice prick I am deeply surprised you haven't gotten FROSTBITE!" She stormed

toward the door and was stopped momentarily by Sesshomaru's cool voice, "The actions were not entirely unwanted if I remember correctly." Her back

went rigid and she growled impressively for a human, then flung open the door and slammed it shut behind her. Sesshomaru was surprised by the show of

violence from the tiny human. She had actually managed to make the door rattle in its hinges. Haruki turned slowly back to Sesshomaru with a look of

amusement on his face, "Hit a sore spot did I?" Sesshomaru sighed inaudibly and raised a brow at his cousin, "Your real reason for being here?" Haruki

smiled and chuckled.

Kagome stormed through the house and out into one of the gardens. Thankfully, she didn't see anyone in her passing…or perhaps they were giving her a

wide berth. At the moment, she didn't care which, she was just glad she hadn't encountered anyone. She collapsed onto a bench, and then flopped onto

her back careful to keep the short skirt in place. She tried to sort out her feelings for the annoying demon, but found she was too confused. She groaned,

"If only it were as easy as picking flower petals." She sat up and grabbed the nearest flower, "I like him…I like him not… I like him…I like him not… I like

him…I like him not… I like him…" She frowned at the empty flower, "Humph. Stupid flower." She got up and wandered the garden. Finally, she sat under a

tree, tucked her legs to the side, and started braiding the long grass together. This was where Haruki found her three hours later. "I hope I am not

interrupting your solitude Lady Kagome." Kagome chuckled, "It's just Kagome, and no I don't really mind the company." Haruki sat across from her, "I

apologize for my impertinent words earlier. I meant no offence. I am unused to my cousin keeping humans as…well keeping humans at all. I had heard that

he was caring for a small human child, but I get here and find you as well. I had assumed that he was following in his father's footsteps." Kagome stopped

braiding and tilted her head, "His father's footsteps?" Haruki nodded, "My uncle mated Sesshomaru's mother to bind two houses together, but while

Sesshomaru was very young, his father met a human princess. Apparently, he fell in love with her. When Sesshomaru's mother found out about it, she was

furious. She left Sesshomaru behind as the rightful heir to the Western Lands, but has never once came back to see him. Sesshomaru's father and his

human concubine conceived a hanyou. Sesshomaru vowed never to have anything to do with his half-brother, but as fate would have it his father, and the

Princess died early on. Sesshomaru took on the weight of the kingdom and the raising of his bastard half-brother Inuyasha." Kagome blinked, trying to fit

the story on Sesshomaru, finding that it accounted for…everything. Haruki continued, "He sent Inuyasha out into the world all alone, watching over him

peripherally, only intervening when necessary. Now that Inuyasha is older, Sesshomaru can finally have the peace he longed for." Kagome frowned, "But

how can he have peace when he has the entire kingdom to rule?" Haruki chuckled, "He finds time." Kagome shook her head, "He's still childish. Taking my

apartment and job away just so I can't leave. All because I found out that I groomed him and not some random demon dog pet." Haruki smiled

complacently and Kagome was reminded how unlike the two cousins were, no matter how similar they looked, "Can you blame him for being childish?

Compared to human lifespans Sesshomaru was only fourteen when he took the helm as Lord." Kagome's eyes bugged, "That young!" Haruki nodded, "Mind

you demons age rapidly in their younger years, but their overall lifespan is much longer. He is the youngest demon to inherit Lordship ever and likely, it will

stay that way. Not many have the fortitude to take control at such a young age." Kagome jumped when Sesshomaru's cool voice cut in, "This Sesshomaru

does not ask for pity from anyone, stop it this instant." Sesshomaru was standing behind her. She arched her head up to look at him, "How long have you

been there?"


	10. Chapter 10

His sliver brow rose, "Long enough." He prided himself on not reacting to the enticing show of breasts Kagome was unknowingly giving him. Then the comic

relief arrived, "Haruki-chan!" Kymela had changed and was now wearing an outfit similar to the first, but was jade colored lamé. Haruki turned and smiled

warmly, "Hey there handsome. Ooh, green is fabulous on you doll!" Kymela squealed and performed a pirouette showing off the whole thing. Sesshomaru

had been aware that his cousin leaned toward men, but he had never seen him act quite like this. He blamed it on Kymela. After the initial shock, Kagome

blinked rapidly then started giggling. She covered her mouth with her hand until the giggles could no longer be contained. Sesshomaru groaned when

Haruki rose and the two men kissed each other on the cheek like old girlfriends. Lost in their own conversation the two walked off. Kagome looked up at

Sesshomaru with unrestrained glee in her eyes. He mentally shook himself and turned, "There is work to do." Without waiting for her to acknowledge or

even get up, he sauntered into the estate. Kagome sighed and got to her feet, finding her way to his study by herself. It was then that she noticed a large

furry…thing draped across his chair. It had been there before, but she hadn't really paid it any notice until now. "Is that…fur?" He glanced at her, then

where she was looking and nodded once, "It was a gift from this one's father; a piece of his own pelt, which this Sesshomaru learned to infuse with this

one's own youkai. It was one of the first training lessons of this one to learn to control youkai." Kagome blinked, "What does it teach you exactly?"

Sesshomaru made no move toward the chair, but the fluff rose of its own accord and snaked its way over to her. She giggled when it curled around her

neck and cuddled her like a cat. "It's so soft." Kagome purred as she ran her hands over the thick pelt. Her eyes were closed in bliss, so she did not see the

way that his widened and the pupils shrank, and then widened in pleasure. He had a peaceful look on his face, until he forced his fur off her. "This one's

moko-moko is an extension of his person. That is what this one's training involved." Moko-moko returned, not to the chair, but to himself. For some reason

he wanted to smell the girl without her knowing it. "This one's father would have been able to further training had he not perished. This one's father's moko

-moko had two tails, and this one's would have been much the same." Her head tilted, "It proves you have more control if you can control more of your

moko-moko?" Sesshomaru nodded and motioned for her to sit. With a sigh, she condemned herself to more paperwork.

Once again, the pair lost themselves to paperwork, proving, that even through the tension, they could work well together. Jaken rapped on the door, and

after Sesshomaru barked a command to enter, Jaken announced that dinner would soon be ready and as soon as he was released, Jaken scampered away.

Without being asked, Kagome stacked the papers so that they were easier to access later. Sesshomaru rose, and then paused to watch Kagome stretch.

She raised her hands up and arched her back slightly causing her breasts to rise as well as the already short skirt. His eyes darkened at the sight of the red

lace peeking through the slit in the side of the dress. Kagome's stretch felt so good she made a small whine of pleasure before she dropped her arms and

noticed Sesshomaru was already gone. Blinking shortly, she shook her head and made her way to the dining hall. Rin, Haruki and Kymela were already

seated, and Sesshomaru was nowhere to be seen. Kagome sat in the seat next to Sesshomaru's and they waited. Finally, he arrived after nearly fifteen

minutes. He was wearing his moko-moko, which Rin thought was very exciting if one went by the way that she squealed. All three youkai winced, but

Sesshomaru was the only one not to cover his ears. "Rin, you must take care to not be so loud. Their hearing is much more advanced than ours and

something loud for you is deafening for them." Kagome smiled after stating this, partly to take the sting out of the reprimand, and partly because she was

proud of her learned knowledge from the book she had read the first night. Rin lowered her head after glancing at the pained expressions around her, "Rin

is sorry. Rin did not mean to hurt anyone; Rin was excited by Sesshomaru-sama's fluffy. It looks very soft." Kagome smiled, and stage-whispered, _"It __**is**_

_very soft Rin." _Rin giggled, and then conversation idled when the food arrived. When dinner was finished, Rin asked to be excused so she could ready for

bed and Sesshomaru nodded his assent. Kagome was still marveling at how much Haruki looked like Sesshomaru, and amused by how different the two

were. Sesshomaru rose, "Let us retire to the library for a nightcap." Kagome was the first to rise, followed by Haruki and finally Kymela. They converged in

the library and Sesshomaru poured three glasses of Cognac until Kagome pouted. He raised a brow and poured a fourth. Before Sesshomaru could stop

her, she downed the whole glass. A look of shock appeared on her face before she shuddered and stuck out her tongue, "Bleck that was terrible!" Kymela

snorted and sipped from his own glass, "Tell me Kagome-sama, have you ever drank before?" She blinked, "Well…ah, no." Kymela snickered, "Well this

should be entertaining." Kagome scrunched up her face, "What do you mean?" Sesshomaru merely shook his head and sat in his favorite seat, listening to

Kymela and Haruki talk. Kagome scoffed and wandered around the library, intent on finding something to do.

Eventually Kagome found a book up on a shelf above her head. Growling at the offensive book, she grabbed the rolling ladder and climbed it. She found it

difficult to tell her feet to get on the right rungs though, so when she finally made it to the book and back down safely she did a happy dance. Her little

dance threw her off balance and she sprawled on the floor. She blinked, wondering how that had come about. Kagome heaved herself to her feet and

meandered to a chair. She plopped down and opened the leather bound book only to quickly snap it back shut. She

didn't see that did she? She slowly opened the book again shocked to see a drawing of two Inu-youkai in their natural form, mating. She flipped through

the pages, unable for some reason to make the words make sense. It wasn't as though it were in another language; she just couldn't seem to get the

words to make any sense. There were pictures of the moon phases and more mating pictures, but since she couldn't read it, she put it aside and stood…or

tried to. The ground tilted under her feet and she fell back into the chair. Glaring at the floor, she rose again and was successful. Now the task of walking.

She concentrated very hard on doing that in her stilettos until she gave up and took the annoyingly abusive shoes off. They were hurting her feet anyway.

Smiling at her ingenuity, she made her way around the library once again. Finally, she found her way back to the men, "Aha! There you are. You moved

Shesshy." She frowned at the way her words came out fuzzy. In fact, her head felt fuzzy too. Talking ceased and Sesshomaru's brow rose as Kymela tried

to hold back his laughter. "This Sesshomaru did no such thing. You are the one who moved." He admonished. Her anger disappeared as soon as she saw

moko-moko, "Fluffy!" Kagome rushed over and snagged the pelt from where it had been resting across his shoulder and the chair. He was so surprised he

didn't even attempt to stop her. Kagome purred and rubbed her cheek back and forth across the pelt. Sesshomaru's eyes lowered to half-mast and he

nearly purred himself. Haruki and Kymela slipped from the room giggling. Sesshomaru glared at the pelt, and then was transfixed. Her dress had slipped

from her shoulder and the lace of her bra was peeping out right under the pelt. Taking control of the pelt, he curled it under her breast nearly groaning

from the feel of the soft flesh under the cloth and lace. Watching intently, he slid the pelt down so it was level with the bottom of her dress. Kagome

moaned when the heavy pelt curled up and pressed firmly against her heated core. Kagome glanced up and saw Sesshomaru, his jaw slack, his golden

eyes blazing. She noticed the very edges of his eyes tinted red and his marks were becoming jagged. "Sesshomaru?" There was no fear in her voice, but

plenty of emotion.


	11. Chapter 11

With a growl, he rose and walked over to her. Kagome placed her hands on his chest, not knowing whether she wanted to push him away or pull him

closer. Sesshomaru growled again and her gaze was fixed on his lips, until he leaned forward and took her lips in a searing, hungry kiss. She fisted her

hands in his shirt and dragged him closer while his hands claimed her waist to pull her closer. Moko-moko shifted to hold the two of them as close as

possible while still pressing against her core. Kagome whimpered and wrapped her legs around his hips, pressing her core against his straining erection.

Sesshomaru groaned and found a wall to lean her against. When he thrust himself against her with the wall to brace her, she broke the kiss to throw her

head back and let out a keening moan. Sesshomaru nuzzled her neck and, mindful of his sharp fangs, sucked in some of her soft skin. Kagome squirmed

against him at the feel of his powerful mouth suckling on her neck, and the gentle pressure of his fangs threatening to pierce her skin. She squeezed him

closer, rubbing her now dripping core against his stiff erection. Sesshomaru abruptly let go of her skin and gasped, "Kagome, you're drunk. I have to stop."

She whimpered, "No, please!" She didn't fully understand what she was trying to ask, "I need…don't," Sesshomaru whined, when she licked his ear. She

blinked and did it again, "You are playing with fire woman." Kagome rolled her hips against his and sucked his earlobe into her hot mouth. Sesshomaru

made and odd choking sound and thrust against her harshly. His breath heaved in and out as if he was in a race. Try as he might he could not move away

from the tempting little human. Kagome decided since he wasn't going to move, then she was; she started to ride his hips and suck his ear in rhythm.

Sesshomaru's eyes rolled into the back of his head, the whites long surrendered to red. With sharp growls, he thrust against her with fervor. He managed

to keep enough sanity to leave their clothes on, despite his inner demon roaring at him to take her the right way. Kagome's breath came shorter and

shorter until he was afraid she was going to hyperventilate, and then her body thrust against him and froze as she cried out.

Kagome awoke early the next morning with a dull ache behind her eyes and what felt like rug burn on her upper thighs. She groaned as she sat up and

looked at her bedside clock. "Five in the morning? What time did I go to bed last night?" Then she tried to remember when she had gone to bed at all. She

frowned, "I remember going to the library with the others and drinking that foul-tasting drink. Then…" she squinted her eyes, her memory becoming hazy.

She remembered some sort of book. Sighing she rose, moved to the armoire, and opened it to find a gauzy white dress with a V cut all the way down to

her belly button. She groaned, but was pleased that it at least went to her knees. The back was all open aside from a few well-placed straps. With it was

another thong, this one in white. The shoes paired with this outfit were plain white pumps in a satin finish. Kagome looked closer at the shoes; make that

silk finish. Kagome panicked when she couldn't find a bra. She looked down at her nightgown and saw the sheer white contraption that left nothing to the

imagination, including the fact that she was not wearing any underwear. She squealed in indignation before rushing into the bathroom to shower. She

showered and then came out in a towel to dress in the new clothes. After some self-debating, she decided that it wouldn't be too hard to wear the dress, so

long as she didn't have to bend down or lean to the side. She brushed her still-damp hair out of the way and sighed. Seeing that it was breakfast time she

decided to go to the sunroom. Kagome was the first to arrive and took her seat. Rin skipped in next, followed by Sesshomaru, who seemed to be in an

even fouler mood this morning. As the food was being set out, Kymela and Haruki finally meandered in. "Did you have a good night Kagome?" Haruki asked

her with a lecherous grin. Kagome blinked, "Um…sure I slept okay. How about you?" He looked disappointed for a moment, and then he grinned again, "I

didn't get much sleep at all." Kagome stared at him; he didn't sleep, and yet he is happy about that fact? Kymela sighed and leaned into Haruki. Kagome

shook her head and got to eating.

Halfway through the meal, Kagome realized that Sesshomaru was stealing peeks at her when she wasn't looking and pretending as if he was focused on his

untouched meal. The other two demons hadn't eaten much either, and were whispering to each other. With a growl, Sesshomaru rose and left the room.

Not long after Kymela squealed and dragged Haruki out of the room. Finally, Rin tilted her head, "Rin is finished, may Rin go play?" Kagome was startled

out of her reverie when she realized the question was directed to her, "Um, sure." Kagome picked at the last of her food, wondering if Sesshomaru wanted

her to work today. She rose and exited the room, heading straight for the study to ask him. The door was closed and when she knocked, she received only

a growl from the other side. She tried the handle, but it was locked, "Sesshomaru-sama? Did you need me today?" She heard nothing else so she shrugged

and moved on to the library. She meandered through the books until one on a table caught her eye; it seemed vaguely familiar to her somehow. She

opened it up and began flipping through the pages. Her eyes widened at the pictures and she started to remember when she had seen it before. "I read

this last night." Kagome blushed realizing it was a demon Kama Sutra based on the phases of the moon. One in particular caught her eye, under a waning

moon. "Arc De Triomph…" Kagome snapped the book shut quickly and put it away. As she walked through the library, another memory began to surface.

Her face flamed as she remembered just what she had done to Sesshomaru, and what he did to her in return. She suddenly wanted normal clothes.

Kagome meandered through the halls until she found herself again at Sesshomaru's study. The door was open but he was nowhere around. Kagome peered

in and saw his moko-moko on his chair. After looking around to see if anyone was watching she slipped in and picked up the pelt. She wrapped the pelt

over her shoulder and cuddled into it. As she turned, she was startled to see Sesshomaru in the doorway glaring at her. She jumped when he growled,

stalked over to her and picked up the trailing end to throw it over his shoulder.

Sesshomaru began walking away, but was stopped by a weight on his pelt. He turned with a scowl to see Kagome shaking her hand furiously, "Girl, remove

your hand from my person immediately." Kagome made a sound of annoyance, "I…um. I can't." Sesshomaru glared at her harder, "Explain." "Um, well I

seem to be glued to it." She said with a frown. Sesshomaru tried pulling, but only succeeded in dragging Kagome around the room. Kagome tried using her

teeth, but when Sesshomaru whined, she remembered belatedly that it was a part of him. "Sorry." He huffed and lugged her through the door. "Haruki

must be behind this. He was always pranking everyone when he was a child." He didn't bellow his name like Kagome would have, he just knew where he

was by following his youkai signature. Sesshomaru kicked open a door, knocking it off its hinges. Kagome realized it was either a guest bedroom or

Kymela's because what Kagome saw when she was dragged into the room was Kymela and Haruki naked and entwined on the bed. She immediately

blushed and turned away. The two on the bed jumped and glared at Sesshomaru as they broke apart. "Tell this Sesshomaru how to remove what you did

and your life will be spared." Haruki chuckled as he finally noticed Kagome on the other end of the moko-moko, "I see my prank is not well received."

Sesshomaru growled and Haruki rose walking abashedly naked over to a box on one of the tables. He opened it and handed Sesshomaru a vial of pink

liquid and a vial of blue liquid. "Here, pour the blue liquid into a basin of cold water big enough for the two of you and soak for five minutes, then pour the

pink into hot water and soak for ten minutes. You must do the cold first though otherwise it won't work." Sesshomaru growled and snatched the vials.

"What exactly was the purpose of pulling this prank when you knew this Sesshomaru would have found you out?" Haruki shrugged, "Amusement."

Sesshomaru turned and dragged Kagome out of the room. She caught sight of Haruki before he winked and waved at her.


	12. Chapter 12

Sesshomaru dragged Kagome all the way to his room, where he had an adjoining hot spring. A servant was there immediately, and he informed him to

bring a basin of cold water. The servant was off in a flash, and was back within five minutes. He and another servant were carrying what looked to Kagome

to be a giant pot. Her suspicions were confirmed when the first servant said, "Apologies my lord, the only receptacle large enough was a pot for feasts."

Sesshomaru nodded, "It will have to do. Leave." Kagome looked at the pot and frowned, it was going to be a tight fit. He poured the blue vial in and

removed his boots. She was annoyed at the fact that his clothes were not stuck to the pelt, since the button shirt was partially opened when he had picked

up his moko-moko. Her eyes widened when he removed his pants and she flushed from her toes to her ears as she turned away. She was suddenly glad

her clothes were stuck on since she didn't want to be naked next to him. She felt a tug on the pelt and glanced over to see him climbing into the pot. He

raised a brow, so she removed her shoes and stepped over to the pot timidly. With a huff at her hesitation, he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her

in himself. She squealed at the temperature of the water and curled up on herself and Sesshomaru smirked and sunk into the water until the pelt was

completely covered. The pot was shaped so that they were practically in each other's laps, but Sesshomaru didn't seem to mind as Kagome did. She shifted

and squirmed until Sesshomaru growled and jerked her into his lap fully. "Sesshomaru-sama!" "Hn, cease with your useless squirming until this is over

with." She finally relaxed into his hold. It was warmer being held in the icy water anyway. Finally, the required time was up and Sesshomaru pushed

Kagome into a standing position, immediately wishing he hadn't. The white dress had become transparent and the tiny white thong left nothing to the

imagination. He sat there staring at her butt, from only a foot away, until she turned, wondering what was taking him so long. His eyes widened as he saw

the front of her. The thong had apparently become transparent as well and he could clearly see her mound at the junction of her thighs. His heated gaze

rose slowly to her breasts, which were clearly visible and hard from the cold before he forced his eyes further to her questioning gaze. He mentally shook

his head as he rose and climbed out, helping Kagome after. He poured the pink vial into the hot spring and climbed in. Kagome was dragged in after him as

he swam over to a ledge. Kagome came up spluttering, "Are you trying to kill me?" Sesshomaru merely snorted, and once again sank to soak the pelt.

Their ten minutes passed in silence and Sesshomaru finally felt the pelt release. Just as he was about to get out, there was a loud bang and a puff of smoke

from the door. Before Sesshomaru could rise to investigate, he heard Haruki cry, "And part two of the best prank ever, you are now locked in for twenty-

four hours. Have fun." Sesshomaru snarled, leaped out of the water and was repelled off the door by a barrier. He roared and slashed at the invisible

barrier, but to no avail.

Kagome rose and started to get out, "Were trapped in here?" He turned to address her, and was again met with her transparent clothes. He nodded

belatedly, forcing his eyes from the goddess parting from the water. Kagome saw something move out of the corner of her eye and was both fascinated

and frightened by the fact that it was Sesshomaru's manhood rising. She finally looked down at herself and stared blankly until her brain caught up and she

squealed trying to cover herself up. There were no towels around, so she dove into Sesshomaru's clothes and wrapped his shirt around herself. He sighed,

"You will get cold unless you remove your wet clothes." "Turn around!" She cried, agreeing with what he had said. He turned obligingly and waited for her

to change into his shirt. After a moment, Kagome cried out and he heard her fall. "Kagome?" He said as he turned. He blinked at the sight before his eyes;

she had somehow managed to get the dress twisted around her ankle, so that when she tried to pull it over her head she had fallen, tangled in the wet

material. Her ass was up in the air, the white thong dissecting her cheeks. Sesshomaru growled and felt a flush cover his cheekbones and ears. She had no

idea that that position was a submissive position for Inu-youkai. His hands twitched, and then curled shut as his claws sliced his palms open. The pain

would help keep his head clear…at least he hoped it would. He attempted to control his voice, "Are you all right?" Kagome struggled, inadvertently wiggling

her butt, "Does it _look_ like I'm all right? Help me!" Sesshomaru swallowed hard, glared down at his manhood, as it was stiff, and swollen, then marched

stiffly over to Kagome and used a claw to deftly slice the material off her body. Kagome shrieked as she was released from the tangle of clothes. She

righted herself and quickly shoved her hands into Sesshomaru's shirt, buttoning it as fast as she could. She looked around to see him sitting on a low bench

by the door. He was facing away from her, but she could see the tension in his shoulders. Kagome looked down at his pants on the floor and picked them

up. She held them out as an offering as she neared him. Sesshomaru snorted, "It will be some time before this Sesshomaru can put those on all the way,

though the gesture is appreciated." Kagome blushed, remembering why he couldn't put on the pants. She sat down by the water's edge and trailed her

toes in. After a while, she heard the rustle of clothing as Sesshomaru finally was able to put the pants on. Kagome sighed, "What are we going to do until

we can get out?" Sesshomaru looked to the ceiling, "This Sesshomaru will meditate. You may do as you please." Kagome sighed again, "I guess I'll take a

nap then." She curled up a bit away from the water's edge and closed her eyes. Sesshomaru watched her out of the corner of his eye until her breathing

evened out and she slipped into sleep.

Sesshomaru was meditating when he heard a small whimper come from Kagome. He opened his eyes and glanced over at her, wishing he hadn't; his shirt

had ridden up on her and her butt was peeking out from under the material. Her movements hypnotized him as it looked as though she was having a _very_

good dream. His mouth dried out and his breathing quickened. He could feel his pupils flare, and then his eyes closed as her scent reached him. He opened

his eyes to realize her arousal had drawn him over, while he was scenting her. He was inches away from her, his eyes heavy-lidded and his fingers itching

to touch her. His jaw went slack when she whispered his name. He growled lightly and started to move away when Kagome rolled in her sleep and clutched

the leg of his pants. Her back arched and she moaned, then sighed as she curled back into the fetal position. "Kagome," he was annoyed that his voice was

so husky, but he cleared his throat and spoke again, "Kagome!" She blinked her eyes up at him sleepily, "Shomaru?" "Relinquish your hold on this

Sesshomaru's person." She blinked at her hands and let go of his pants before sitting up. "Is the door open yet?" He shook his head, "Your dreaming was

disturbing this Sesshomaru's concentration." "Sorry," she mumbled as she tried to remember her dreams. Sesshomaru moved away again and when parts

of her dreams came back to her, she covered her face, as she turned red. _"Where did I get these kinds of thoughts? I've never been with anyone, and I _

_don't watch those kinds of movies!"_ "How long have we been in here now?" He glared at her, "Three hours, eight minutes, and twenty-four seconds." She

groaned, "Oh this is going to take _forever_!" Sesshomaru huffed and attempted once again to meditate when a growl interrupted him. He frowned and

looked at Kagome who giggled, "It's almost lunchtime. Guess I'm already hungry." He raised a brow, "There is no food in here." She sighed, "Oh man this

sucks, stuck in here with the biggest jerk of all time, with no food and nothing to do!" She thought a moment, "Do you wanna play a game?" "No," he said

without looking at her. Kagome jumped up and stood in front of Sesshomaru, "Oh c'mon! We can play I spy." He growled and she took that as an

affirmative, "Hmm, I spy with my little eye something…blue." He stared up at her silently, hoping she would give up, "C'mon Sesshomaru, don't give up!"

He sighed, and glanced around the room, "Hn, the water is blue." Kagome giggled, "Yes, but that isn't what I spy." Sesshomaru listed all the things in the

room that were blue and he kept getting a negative answer. "So what is it?" Kagome traced his crescent moon on his head, "This is what I spy."

Sesshomaru gasped and his eyes tinged red, "Do not do that again."


	13. Chapter 13

Kagome's eyes widened, "What did I do?" He glared at her innocent face and blinked slowly, "Youkai markings are very sensitive. Do not touch this

Sesshomaru again." Kagome stuck out her lip, for the life of her looking like a pouting child, "You don't have to be so mean about it. I doubt they're as

sensitive as you say they are." Before he realized her intent, she reached out and gently ran her fingernail over his moon again. Sesshomaru gasped and

Kagome found herself pinned under his weight. She squealed in surprise as Sesshomaru growled in warning. "Do…it…again," he ground out. Kagome

hesitated, "You said not to." He narrowed his eyes and growled at her once more. Kagome reached out with a slightly trembling hand and ran her fingernail

across one of his stripes, causing his back to bow against her and a moan to slip past his lips. Kagome flushed and her eyes widened almost comically as

she stared at him in shock. Sesshomaru seemed to be trembling as he stared at her with his eyes tinged with more red than they had been before, "Tell me

Kagome, are you as responsive when you are sober?" She blinked, "You didn't refer to yourself in the third person." She stopped speaking when his hand

came to rest on her left thigh. "Sesshomaru?" "Hn?" He murmured as his lips found her earlobe, then she gasped and shivered, "What are you doing?" He

growled gently causing her to shiver again, "You seemed to want this very much last night Kagome." Kagome seemed light-headed as memories from last

night resurfaced again. She had never felt anything like that before, and was starting to want it to happen again. His hand moved higher on her thigh and

she grasped his wrist to stop the movement. His hips twitched against hers as she unknowingly gripped the marks there. His eyes were fully red as he

claimed her lips in a kiss. His hips rolled again, making his erection known, causing Kagome to wrap her legs instinctively around his waist. That movement

had her connect with another set of stripes riding his hips, and her lack of decent undergarments nearly drove him to the brink. He could feel her core

against his manhood, wet and tantalizingly close. "Kagome," he growled huskily, "If we do not stop, we will do something we both may regret." She

focused on his eyes, which were boring into her. She had never felt surer of something in her life. She was a healthy twenty-four year old woman, albeit a

virgin, who happened to be in the arms of an obviously willing male. Kagome made a decision that would change her life forever.

Kagome smiled and raised her free hand; first, she traced the moon, and then trailed the stripes from his cheek to his hairline, so she could pull him down

for a kiss. Sesshomaru shuddered and plunged into the kiss, a purring growl erupting from his chest unbeknownst to him. Her hand slipped from his

hairline back to his cheek stripes, causing him to kiss her wildly. Sesshomaru's hand started moving again as she arched her back, sliding one of her legs

down to tangle with his. He whimpered as her heel brushed the stripe on his calf. His mind was reeling; she was touching one of each of his markings and

he was rock hard. His hand met lace and he growled, ripping the annoying piece of fabric off her. Kagome gasped as cool air touched her core, before

Sesshomaru's body was pressing against her again. They both moaned at the feel of heated flesh touching heated flesh. Suddenly impatient, Sesshomaru

ripped the shirt open, buttons scattering. Kagome inhaled and hummed her approval, then saw stars as Sesshomaru's mouth found a nipple and the hand

of the wrist she was holding slid against her heated core. Kagome remembered this feeling from the night before, and bucked against his hand trying to

find relief faster. Sesshomaru growled and bit gently on her nipple, before soothing it with his tongue and switching to the other nipple giving it the same

treatment. Just when she was getting close, he stopped and replaced his fingers with the head of his erection. Kagome stilled and glanced down. Kagome

knew the human body; she had studied it in high school, but he wasn't human and she wasn't sure humans even got that big. She looked at him

apprehensively, and he froze just knowing she was finally going to stop him. No matter that he always got his way, his honor would prevent him from

taking her after her dismissal. His cool mask of indifference slipped on and he started to disentangle himself from her limbs, but was stopped by a faint,

"wait," from Kagome. He blinked and she blushed, "I…was just erm…surprised I guess…you're kind of ah…big." He blinked at her before a small smile

appeared on his lips. Kagome was stunned; she couldn't ever remember him smiling. He pressed himself against her opening and she gasped and froze

again. "Relax," he murmured in her ear. She whimpered and squirmed, as he pressed into her slightly. He withdrew and Kagome was getting ready to

complain, when he came back, but went deeper this time. A pleasant feeling came from deep within her and she wondered exactly what it was. They both

froze when he came to the membrane marking her as a virgin. "Kagome," "Please!" She wailed, "You can't stop! Just do it already!" That was all he needed

for his beast to take over. His eyes flared red and he slammed home. Kagome whimpered, but there was not much pain. Sesshomaru's hips slapped

against hers as he thrust out of control, Kagome keening under him. He gripped her hips and raised them slightly, trying to alleviate the pressure building

in his lower spine. Kagome was thrashing under him, crying out incoherently, and then she wrapped her legs around his hips. The friction of her legs

against his hip stripes was too much for Sesshomaru; his rhythm faltered, but he thrust deeper. Kagome screamed as the coil building inside her snapped

and she exploded. Sesshomaru gasped as her feminine walls clamped down around his shaft, then the pressure increased and his testicles pulled up as his

own orgasm hit, erupting inside Kagome. With a roar, Sesshomaru's fangs clamped down on the junction of Kagome's neck.

Kagome fainted as her orgasm completed and she missed Sesshomaru's chuckle, "You fainted again." Kagome woke feeling warm and content, that is until

she tried to stretch and whimpered in pain. She opened her eyes trying to figure out what was wrong, and encountered mounds of white fluff. She realized

she was wrapped in Sesshomaru's pelt and sat up slowly. Sesshomaru was meditating again and she looked down at herself, realizing she wasn't wearing

any clothes. She looked over mournfully at the remnants of her dress and underwear, and then at Sesshomaru's shirt that was missing most of its buttons.

She moved to get the shirt when she winced and whimpered. "The warm water will help ease sore muscles." She glanced up at him, but he hadn't moved

other than to speak. She narrowed her eyes at him and made her way slowly to the water. She heard Sesshomaru growl as the pelt slid across her skin and

she smiled to herself. She pushed the pelt off herself and slid into the water, hissing as it caressed her skin. She turned her head to look at Sesshomaru

again and winced as a pain shot across her neck. She touched it to find two small bumps. "Sesshomaru did you…bite me?" His eyes opened slowly and

blinked at her. "Yes." Kagome blinked back, "Um…why?" "This Sesshomaru does not wish to discuss this with you at the moment." Kagome pouted, "Back

to the formalities I see." Sesshomaru hnned at her then closed his eyes again. "So how long have we been in here now?" "Hnn, you slept most of the day.

There are only two and one half hours remaining." "I slept that long!" His eyes opened again and fixed on her as she floated in the water, "Humans are

weak things. Do you know you passed out before as well? It was not even as strenuous then." Kagome could swear she turned the water up a few degrees

with the force of her blush. "Baka." She mumbled as she sank under the water to wet her head. When she finally came back up for air, he was once again

ignoring her. She got out and re-dressed herself in Sesshomaru's shirt, buttoning the few left and using remnants of her dress to tie it shut. Luckily,

Kagome was a lot smaller than Sesshomaru, so there was plenty of material to make up for the missing buttons. Kagome contented herself with looking at

the paintings on the walls. There were many fields, but there were very few with living creatures in them. Kagome was so absorbed in one of the paintings

she didn't even realize the time was up and Sesshomaru had left. She turned to go to another wall, and noticed Sesshomaru missing. She blinked and

looked at the door. Upon realizing it was open, she rolled her eyes and screamed, "Jerk!" She stormed out of the room and went in search of her own

room.


	14. Chapter 14

She got to her room and blinked at the material on her bed. It was a pale violet halter top, again with no bra, and a black micro mini skirt. The

accompanying thong was royal purple and the heels matched her underwear. When she saw the height of the heels, she decided to go barefoot. If Rin was

not forced to wear shoes, then neither should she be. Kagome looked at the ceiling and counted to ten, then dressed. Kagome was starving, and she

practically ran to the dining room, feeling as though her stomach was caving in. Since it was technically too early for lunch, Kagome was not expecting

anything to be there. She was sure she was going to have to track someone down, but to her amazement when she got there, she found an array of foods.

Tsukino came out of a shaded corner, "Lord Sesshomaru asked to have a meal laid out for you. He mentioned you would be hungry after that nasty prank

of Master Haruki's. He said you were locked in there since before lunch yesterday." Kagome noticed Tsukino staring at her neck strangely, she had

forgotten about the bite until Tsukino was staring at it. "Oh yeah, I asked him about that. He wouldn't tell me why he bit me like that. Do you know?"

Tsukino blinked rapidly as her eyes widened and she back up some, "If Lord Sesshomaru did not tell you about it, then I am not the one to tell you either.

That will be for him or one of his choosing to tell you." She bowed and rushed out of the room. Kagome blinked at her as she scuttled out, then shrugged

and sat to eat. She ate as much as she could, then got up and wondered where to go now. She decided on Sesshomaru's study. She could go there and

work, as well as ask him about the bite. She got there and didn't find him in there. After some debate, she decided to go to the library to see if she could

figure anything out from the demon culture book she had read when she first came here. She had found what she was looking for on chapter twelve.

"Mate!" she shrieked, "No-no-no-no-no-no-no. That is not possible. Oh…my…gosh." Kagome stared at the book as if it were going to start talking and admit

it lied. "I'm Lord Sesshomaru's mate."

Kagome rose and let the book drop to the floor from her lap, and she stumbled to the door. She wandered through the halls, looking for Sesshomaru, and

then decided to try outside. She wandered toward the stable, "Jiru-san do you know where Sesshomaru is?" He blinked at her, then stammered, "N-n-no

Kagome-Sama. This lowly stable master knows not the whereabouts of our lord." Kagome sighed, everyone had been avoiding her all day, and those that

did speak to her, were stammering like Jiru and now using the Sama instead of the San as they had been before. Apparently, everyone knew just by the

mark on her neck. Kagome was marching into one of the gardens when Kiomaru called out, "You want to know where Lord Sesshomaru is? Why don't you

use your link to him?" Kagome stopped and turned, looking for Kiomaru, finding her up in a tree again. "Why are you always so high up in trees?" Kiomaru

shrugged, "I'm an eagle youkai." Kagome blinked. "Oh. Wait, what link?" Kiomaru scoffed, "Just think real hard and you can find him." Kagome scowled

and marched off. She plopped herself under a Sakura tree and focused. She blinked as she realized she could tell where Sesshomaru was. She rose and

followed the faint pull toward her mate. She neared a secret door in the wall surrounding the castle and smiled. She pushed it open, slipped through and

closed it behind her, then continued to follow the pull. She could hear screaming in the distance, and what sounded like pleading. She giggled, wondering

what Sesshomaru was doing to his cousin to make him scream like that. She walked quietly through the woods, admiring the scenery, as this was the first

she had seen outside of the castle since she had arrived. Had it really only been five days ago? Time sure was flying by quickly, and she didn't even miss

her old life very much. She was adjusting quite well inside the castle walls. Kagome stopped walking when she heard the leaves rustle to her right.

A handsome demon stepped out of the foliage, "Mmm, what's a tasty bite like you doing so far from safety?" Kagome froze, realizing she was out in the

middle of a youkai-filled forest with no weapons or protection. The demon pounced, and she was getting ready to scream a giant boomerang flew out of

nowhere and smashed into the demon, sending it sprawling. The demon rose up and hissed at her, revealing itself as a panther youkai. A person covered

head to toe in battle gear jumped out of a tree and threw some sort of smoke bomb that sent the panther coughing and sputtering as is slinked away with

its tail quite literally tucked between its legs. The person removed their mask, revealing a woman. "My name is Sango. Are you all right?" Kagome nodded,

"Yes, and my name is Kagome." Sango scrutinized Kagome, "You are mated to a demon?" Kagome blushed, "I was meaning to ask him about that."

Sango's eyes hardened, "He did this against your will?" Kagome fidgeted, "Well, just the bite…um…though I kind of liked it." Sango blinked, "Oh. You do

realize exactly what being a mate entails right?" Kagome shrugged, "I was reading up on a demon culture book, so I get the idea." Sango pursed her lips,

"And did you read this book before, or after?" Kagome chuckled weakly, "I read some of it before…but the mate section I found after. Look I seriously

doubt he meant to do it. I mean his cousin locked us in the bathhouse for a prank. My clothes got sliced, so I had to wear his and stuff just…happened."

Sango laughed at Kagome's blush, and then sobered suddenly, "You were a virgin, weren't you?" Kagome blinked at the abrupt question, "Yes." Sango

nodded, "That explains why he marked you. Demons like to claim to the world their conquests…even if it was done subconsciously. They're very territorial."

Kagome let out a bark of laughter, "Not to mention he's an Inu-Taiyoukai." Sango's mouth gaped, "Inu…you don't mean Sesshomaru-dono do you?"

Kagome nodded, and Sango shivered, "He's cold blooded. Although I have to admit he's built like a god." "This Sesshomaru thanks you for the compliment

and wishes to thank you for your assistance in protecting his mate." Kagome shrieked as the voice came out of nowhere. Sango jumped a bit, and then

watched warily as Sesshomaru floated down on his youkai cloud.

Kagome marched closer to him and whacked him on the arm, much as she had when he was in dog form, "You left without telling me we were free from

that accursed room. I can't believe you! Not to mention you don't tell me what the bite meant, and then you left the castle!" "How did you get out?" He

asked quietly, Kagome shrugged, "I followed your…erm…trail? Or whatever it is that I can feel through this." She waved at the mark and Sesshomaru

widened his eyes slightly, "How did you learn to do that? There are only a select few humans that can follow one's aura." Kagome chewed on her lip and

shrugged. Sango studied her quietly, "Does anyone in your family have any holy abilities?" Kagome laughed, "My Ojiisan is always crying demon and

slapping sutras on people, but I doubt he has any powers. My Okaasan and Otooto run the family shrine, but I don't think they have any power either."

Sango's eyes widened, "Your family runs a shrine? Is your family's bloodline the original?" Kagome nodded, "I think so, I've never asked." Sango beamed,

"You could be a Miko. You should meet my friend Miroku-san. He is a Houshi, and I think he would be able to tell whether you have Miko abilities or not."

Kagome glanced at Sesshomaru to see how he was taking this bit of information, only to find him staring at her intently. "Will I be able to finally leave to at

least go see if I am a Miko?" Sesshomaru glanced at Sango, "This ningen onna is a Youkai Taijiya." Sango nodded, "If she is indeed a Miko, and has

remained untrained, her powers are likely unpredictable and it would be wise to get her some training." Sesshomaru nodded, "That is acceptable. We will

depart immediately." Sango and Kagome blinked at each other when Sesshomaru disappeared, only to return a few moments later with Tsukino in tow. She

bowed low and handed Kagome a pack with a change of clothes. Kagome breathed a sigh of relief when she found a pair of pants and boots inside. She

quickly slipped the pants on over the mini skirt and put the boots on. Tsukino took the empty pack and bowed low again before disappearing back toward

the estate. Sango smiled, "I bet Shippo would love to meet another Kitsune." Kagome frowned, "Shippo?" Sango nodded, "An orphaned Kitsune that I

found wandering with Kirara a youkai nekomata." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, "You seem very comfortable within the presence of demons Taijiya." She

nodded, "I was trained to believe there is some good in most youkai and that you must not slay them indiscriminately. Shippo and Kirara are friendly;

therefor I have no reason to dislike them. In addition, you have not tried to harm either of us yet, so I will hold nothing against you until you do.

Sesshomaru motioned for Sango to lead the way, and they were off.


	15. Chapter 15

Sango marched unerringly through the dense woods, until they came to a stream hours later. She whistled and a giant cat descended from the sky with a

roar. "This is Kirara. You and I can ride her so we can get there faster." Kagome smiled as she walked over to the neko youkai and scratched her between

the ears. She had to reach up a bit, as the cat was slightly bigger than a horse. Sango hopped up and Kagome clambered up behind her. Sango smiled at

Sesshomaru, "You can keep up right?" Kirara roared and took flight racing off into the sky. Sesshomaru grunted and called his cloud, catching up easily.

They flew east for most of the day until Sango noticed Kagome wilting behind her, "Hey Sesshomaru-dono, I think we need to stop for a while. Kagome-

chan does not look well." He nodded his approval and gathered Kagome as they touched down. To his surprise, she was unconscious and feverish. "Is she

okay?" Sango asked as she peered over his shoulder. "This Sesshomaru knows not what ails her." Sango fretted nervously until Sesshomaru's eyes

widened and he nearly dropped the unconscious girl. Kirara reared back with a hiss as a wave of power blew out from Kagome. Kirara retreated to a safe

distance, while Sesshomaru held her silently. Sango was confused as to why her cat had moved so far away all of the sudden. She glanced at Sesshomaru,

and noticed he was rather pale and seemed to be sweating. Gently he laid the girl on the ground, using his pelt to cradle her. He growled quietly and

moved away from her. When he was about the same distance away as Kirara, Sango could see him visibly relax. She blinked and looked down at Kagome,

then back to Sesshomaru, "What happened?" Sesshomaru clenched his stinging hands, "You are a mere human, therefor you cannot feel the power

emanating from this ningen onna. It would seem that this Sesshomaru may have been remiss in marking her." When Sango only stared in confusion,

Sesshomaru continued, "It would seem that her powers are fighting against this Sesshomaru's mark and seed. Her powers are lashing out in her weakened

state. Perhaps it would be wise to bring the Houshi here instead?" Kirara growled in agreement and Sango jumped on her back without hesitation, "I will

hurry." Sesshomaru made no indication that he had heard her, but Sango and Kirara hurried off anyway.

It was nearing morning before Sesshomaru could feel the youkai of the nekomata and a considerably strong holy aura. He blinked, realizing there were two

holy auras approaching. As they touched down, Sesshomaru saw the promised houshi and a strong miko along with Sango. The miko spoke not a word, but

quietly knelt on Kagome's right while the monk began placing ofuda around the pair. Sesshomaru watched them intently as he sensed the monk erecting a

barrier. The miko was glowing bright pink, as her hands hovered over Kagome. The monk finished the barrier and turned to the silent lord, "Forgive us our

rudeness, but we could feel this lady's distress a long way off. I am Miroku, a humble houshi and my companion is the great miko Midoriko. Midoriko-sensei

happened to be in the village and decided to help. I am grateful for that, as I do not have much knowledge in the way of miko." Sesshomaru grunted and

watched carefully as the older miko tended to Kagome. After a bit, the miko stopped glowing, "This is not something I can heal. Her reiki is fighting your

youkai. Since it is from a mating binding it is a deeper connection than I can repair. She will come to terms with it, or your youkai will destroy her." Sango

and Miroku gasped and stared at Midoriko while Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. Midoriko continued, "It is unlikely she will survive. She has great potential,

but her powers have not yet been realized. She does not encompass the key to her hidden reiki retained deeply inside." Sesshomaru stared down at

Kagome, taking note of her pale features and pained expression, even as she was unconscious. Miroku and Sango were shocked when Sesshomaru stepped

past the ofuda barrier without flinching and knelt next to Kagome. Midoriko bowed her head and rose, "Come, there is nothing more we can do here."

Sango sniffled and Miroku sighed sadly, then the three walked away. "Kagome." Sesshomaru spoke her name softly, "Kagome, you need to wake up now.

This Sesshomaru…_I _need you to open your eyes now." Kagome frowned and mumbled. Had Sesshomaru been a human he would have never heard her,

"You're not talking in third person again." He smirked, "It seems I cannot control myself when it comes to you Kagome." Kagome moaned and she glowed a

faint pink. Sesshomaru's eyes glittered as pain overwhelmed him, but he did not move. His face distorted as his beast tried to emerge, but he fought it

back. "Is this the pain you are going through because of a lapse in my judgment? Very well, I shall endure as well." He sat and cradled her in his lap,

gritting his teeth against the pain threatening to drive him mad. Kagome's pain ratcheted up when his youkai encountered her reiki. He wanted badly to

drop her and move away, but his pride kept him there, holding the one causing him so much pain. As the sun rose above the horizon, her power started

lessening. Finally, Sesshomaru was able to relax and fully rein his youkai in. Kagome lay still in his arms, "Kagome. Kagome wake up!" Sesshomaru could

hear her heart beating, although it was weak. Kagome did not move for a long while, as he repeatedly called her name. Finally, her heartbeat got stronger

until she moaned and slowly opened her eyes. "Ses-sho-maru?"

Kagome could have sworn she saw the ghost of a smile on his lips, before it was replaced with his usual mask. "What happened?" Kagome whispered.

Sesshomaru took in a breath and let it out slowly, "When I forged the mating mark, I did not realize you were an untrained miko. Your reiki reacted

violently with my youkai and nearly ended your life." Her eyes widened, "How did I live? Did we make it to the houshi?" He shook his head, "I sent the

exterminator ahead to retrieve him, and she also brought back another miko. I was told you had no chance of surviving, but I did not believe that. I believe

the pain you were feeling slipped through the bond and took refuge in the very same youkai it was fighting against." Kagome frowned, "That doesn't even

make any sense." Sesshomaru chuckled lightly, "But it makes perfect sense. My youkai inside your body was a foreign entity, but inside my body, it is

home. We have a bond now, and as we are connected, so too is our power. Therefore what is causing you pain, was grounded when it came in contact with

its source." Kagome blinked owlishly as she tried to make sense of the situation. She was finally starting to get it when she giggled, "You are still speaking

normally." Sesshomaru dumped her on the ground and rose, "You are hopeless." She sat up and cackled, "I think it is very funny that you forget to be so

arrogant around me." After she stood, she tilted her head, "So what did you do to Haruki-san?" Sesshomaru growled and turned away, "That pest got away

before this Sesshomaru was able to properly punish him." Kagome smiled, shook her head and deadpanned, "And once again you are yourself." He glared

at her from the corner of his eye, "Come, we should continue on our previous mission. You are now a confirmed miko, therefore this Sesshomaru cannot

have you untrained and residing in the estate." Kagome tilted her head, "What's wrong with me being there?" He blinked slowly at her, and then said, "You

are a miko, this Sesshomaru, along with his entire staff are demons." Kagome blushed and giggled, "Wouldn't want me purifying anyone on accident." He

raised a brow, "Indeed." Without a word, Sesshomaru started walking in the direction that the others had left in before. With a sigh, Kagome followed.

Sesshomaru stopped abruptly when he heard Kagome's stomach growl. "It seems that this Sesshomaru has once again forgotten to feed you. Wait here."

Kagome blinked as he had disappeared. She sighed and mumbled, "I hate it when he disappears like that." A minute later five dead rabbits dropped in front

of Kagome, who squealed and leapt back. She bumped into a large chest and looked up to see Sesshomaru staring down at her with faint amusement.

"This Sesshomaru will get wood ready for a fire. Do you know how to skin a rabbit?" She shook her head and he sighed faintly, "Very well, you sit and this

Sesshomaru shall take care of everything." Kagome did as told and watched Sesshomaru build a fire, then skin all of the rabbits with ease. He speared two

of them on a stick and placed them over the fire. She then watched in amazement and disgust when he bit into one of the raw rabbits. Not once did he

take his eyes off her until she said, "If you're waiting for me to react, I won't. Just because I think its gross doesn't mean I'll go screaming into the night or

throwing up all over." Sesshomaru stopped staring at her and instead focused on his food. When all of his rabbits were gone and Kagome had picked hers

up and begun to eat, he licked his fingers and hands clean. Finally, he stuck out his tongue and licked all remains off his face. He glanced up at Kagome to

see her with a bite halfway to her mouth and her mouth open while her head was canted to the side. He narrowed his eyes at her, "Why are you staring at

this Sesshomaru like a buffoon?" "How…how did you do that?" He tilted his head, "What, this?" He proceeded to lick his face again and Kagome's eyes

widened, "Yeah…um, was your tongue always that long?" He chuckled, "Have you forgotten this Sesshomaru's true form already?" She blushed, "I…well…

um." His eyelids lowered and a sadistic grin blossomed on his face, "And exactly what are you thinking, Ka-go-me?" "Nothing!" she yelped and turned away

to finish her meal. He waited until she was finished and then he crept up behind her and licked her ear. She squealed and jumped up. Sesshomaru stayed

in his kneeling position while Kagome was standing in front of him blushing. "Hentai!" He snaked a hand around her waist and murmured, "I could show

you hentai." He buried his face into her abdomen and nuzzled it while his hands forced her to kneel. As he lowered her body, he moved his head higher

until he was nuzzling her breasts, then her throat. When his mouth moved over the mating mark, Kagome shuddered and moaned. Sesshomaru growled

and took possession of her lips. Kagome melted against him and Sesshomaru pulled back abruptly. Kagome blinked dazedly and focused on the mild grin

Sesshomaru was giving her. She pouted, "Jerk." Sesshomaru rose, "We must find shelter, there is a storm coming. This Sesshomaru would normally be

fine, but a human such as you would most probably catch cold." Kagome looked up at the clear, cloudless sky in bewilderment, "But there aren't even any

clouds. Why would you say it is going to rain?" He narrowed his eyes at her, "Do you doubt this Sesshomaru's nose?" Kagome raised her brows, "You can

_smell _the rain coming?" In pure Sesshomaru fashion, he turned on his heel and started walking away, seemingly uncaring if Kagome followed at all.


	16. Chapter 16

Sesshomaru found a cave nearby. It was narrow, but hidden from the elements. Almost as soon as they settled themselves in there was a flash of lightning

and the following rumble of thunder. Kagome jumped and squeaked, then huddled in close to Sesshomaru. He rolled his eyes at her actions then proceeded

to go to sleep. Kagome stared at him, wondering how he could possibly go to sleep in a storm. Soon the roar of the rain drowned out most of the sounds of

the thunder, and the only light was from the flashes of lightening in the distance. Kagome was bored, and Sesshomaru was sleeping, so she decided to

have a little fun. She used the very tip of her finger to brush the fine hairs on Sesshomaru's ear causing it to twitch ever so gently. Stifling her giggle, she

did it again. By the third time, he was awake enough to realize it was Kagome. He made no movement. Since he was waiting for the touch, he was able to

resist the urge to twitch. Kagome frowned, and then used her hair to brush his ear. Sesshomaru was having a hard time holding still that time, but he

managed and she pouted. She thought a moment, then grinned widely. Remembering where she had scratched when he was in his other form, she

repeated the action. It took all his willpower to stay still that time. He was covered in gooseflesh and was nearly quivering, but Kagome had not noticed.

Kagome smiled again and buried herself in his pelt as she stroked it in her hands. Sesshomaru groaned and his eyes popped open staring at her hard.

Kagome giggled, but as lightening flashed, she saw the predatory look in his eyes. She realized her mistake too late as he crawled slowly over to her.

Kagome tried to rise, but found herself wrapped in the very pelt she was just teasing. She gasped as the pelt snaked across her mating mark to caress her

right breast. Sesshomaru rumbled in pleasure as he crawled above her and Kagome arched her back as he rested his lower torso against hers. She

whispered his name and he was undone; with a groan, his lips met hers and she responded with as much fervor as him. Clothes quickly meant nothing as

the two stripped each other, somehow managing to not tear anything. As he entered her, she was surprised to see that his eyes were only tinged red

slightly, she would have to ask him about that later. That thought quickly left her head when he thrust sharply. Remembering how sensitive his markings

were she gripped his hips with her legs and gently ran her fingertips across his wrists. Sesshomaru moaned without restraint and shuddered, before

increasing his pace. Kagome cried out and squeezed harder. Suddenly Kagome wanted to taste his markings; it was a strange urge, but she didn't resist.

She leaned up and licked his cheek, which caused him to growl and snap his hips sharply. Kagome continued to kiss his markings while Sesshomaru

growled steadily around his grunts. When Kagome licked his ear, he nearly howled. Kagome noticed, and like she had when she was drunk she suckled on

it. Lightning flashed and thunder roared, but the roar was nothing compared to Sesshomaru's at his climax. Later Kagome would realize she had screamed,

but for now all she was aware of, were the aftershocks of her release.

Sesshomaru collapsed next to her and both panted uncontrollably. When Kagome finally caught her breath, she giggled and turned her head to look at

Sesshomaru. He furrowed his brow, "What on earth is possibly funny?" Kagome covered her eyes with her hand, "I'm still awake this time." Sesshomaru

chuckled, causing Kagome to stare at him in awe. Kagome shivered and snuggled closer to him, so he wrapped his pelt around the two of them like a

blanket. "If you had told me a week ago that I would be mated to a demon I would have laughed." Sesshomaru grunted, "And had anyone told me I would

be mated at all they would be dead." Kagome stared at him wondering if that were actually true. He wouldn't really kill someone for saying something like

that…would he? After a few minutes, she came to the horrifying conclusion that he probably would. _"Oh Kagome, _what _have you gotten yourself into?" _With

a shake of her head, she curled into Sesshomaru's warm body and drifted off into sleep. When the storm ended, the early afternoon sun came out and light

slowly filled the cave. Sesshomaru woke with Kagome curled up on his chest sleeping contentedly. He frowned when he realized this was the first time he

had ever woken up with another, but then he smiled as he also realized it would be the first for her too. Kagome mumbled and woke. She sat up and

stretched while Sesshomaru appreciated the view. Kagome rubbed sleepy eyes and when she finally woke up more, she gasped and covered her exposed

breasts. Sesshomaru frowned and touched her wrists, "This Sesshomaru has seen you naked a few times already, why are you ashamed?" Kagome blushed

and looked away, "I…well," she shrugged and slowly lowered her hands. She peered at him from the corner of her eye and saw him smiling gently. She

licked her lip and saw his eyes darken. She faced him fully and licked her lip again. This time his smile disappeared and his eyes drooped slightly. After a

moment of debate, Kagome decided to try something. She glanced at his lips and leaned in, stopping before she reached them. His eyes widened and his

lips parted, Kagome took that as her cue.

Sesshomaru groaned as Kagome's lips touched his. Kagome wasn't getting the right angle so she lifted her leg and straddled his waist. Sesshomaru gasped

and hardened while Kagome took possession of his mouth. His hands traveled up her thighs to grip her waist. She could feel his claws digging into her hips,

not enough to hurt, but she could feel his tension. Kagome kissed him as if she was drowning and he was air. Finally, Sesshomaru shifted her so she could

feel his straining erection and she moaned into his mouth. Sesshomaru took possession of the kiss and rolled them so he was on top. Sesshomaru grabbed

one of her legs and brought it up between them. He broke the kiss and watched her reaction as he entered her. Kagome arched her back and cried out as

the deeper penetration shocked her into an immediate orgasm. Sesshomaru groaned as she clamped down on him. With a hiss, he pumped into her while

she was still climaxing. It seemed to go on and on until Sesshomaru couldn't hold back anymore and he let go. He slid out of her and flipped onto his back

while Kagome gasped weakly. She finally turned her head and blinked at him owlishly, "Wow." He grunted his agreement and sighed, "We should eat

before we go again." Kagome's stomach agreed with him…loudly. Kagome laughed, "I've never eaten so much before and still been so hungry!"

Sesshomaru arched a brow, "You have also never had sex so much before. Physical activity eats up a lot of energy." Kagome blushed and he rose to dress.

"This Sesshomaru shall return shortly with provisions." After he left, Kagome dressed as well and cuddled his pelt until he returned. This time he brought

many fruit and some fish. After starting a fire and putting her fish to cook, he started eating his fish. She watched him as she bit into a juicy peach. She

found watching him eat wasn't nearly as disgusting as it was before. She finished her meal and the two finally started off again.

Sesshomaru clutched her to his side and formed his cloud beneath their feet. Kagome gasped as the world fell away. She giggled as the song from Disney's

Aladdin popped into her head. She could totally see how the princess was awed by the carpet ride. She was then floored as she realized that by mating

Sesshomaru, she was now a lady. She glanced up at his stoic face wondering if she was going to be capable of filling that role. After all, she was only a dog

groomer.


End file.
